The International Fine Art and Antique Dealers Show Hosted a Reception to Celebrate The Lighting Committee of The Fund for Park Avenue

Barbara McLaughlin and Michael Scully (Photo Credit: Laurie Lambrecht)

The Fund for Park Avenue 's 65th year of sustaining the Park Avenue Tree Lighting which remembers fallen heroes to be lit on December 5th


A private reception and viewing of The International Fine Art and Antiques Dealers Show celebrated the 65th anniversary of The Park Avenue Tree Lighting, a tradition of lighting the trees along Park Avenue each winter that began as a way to honor the men and women who died in WWII.

Today, the illuminated trees serve as a memorial to all who have lost their lives defending our country. The trees will be lit on Sunday, December 5th, following a ceremony outside the Brick Presbyterian Church (Park Avenue and 91st Street) at 6:30 p.m. that serves both as a reminder of the original meaning of the lights and a celebration of the holiday season.

The Fund for Park Avenue is a non-profit organization that plants, lights and maintains the trees and flowers on the Park Avenue Malls. The Park Avenue Tree Lighting would not happen without support from the community (the Lighting Committee, the buildings on Park Avenue, friends and neighbors from New York City and as far away as California). In the early days, a few families underwrote the costs, however, today The Fund relies on over 1,000 donors to ensure that the tradition of honoring the men and women who have died defending our country continues.

Guests included NYC Dept of Parks and Recreation’s Manhattan Borough Commissioner William Castro, members of The Fund’s Board of Directors and Lighting Committee as well as Pat and Steven Attoe, Jeremy and Friederike Biggs, Amy and Carter Beal, Charles C. Bergman (Chairman of The Fund’s Sculpture Advisory Committee), Mr. and Mrs. Christopher Bonner, Tom and Paula Burchill, Robert Burton, Rob Byrnes, Blaine and Robert Caravaggi, Blair and Alastair Clark, Robin Cofer, Dr. and Mrs. John Espy, Debbie Fechter, John Erickson, Anne Garonzik, Marshall Keating and Judith Harper, Konrad Keesee with son, Chris, and grandson, Michèle Gerber Klein, Blake, Stuart Alan Levy, Hildegard Mahoney, Roman Martinez IV, Kevin McLaughln, Seton Melvin, Helen Miller, Marie Norton, Susan Oliver, Dan Oliver, Liz and Jeffrey Peek, Susan and George Relyea, Barbara Saltzman, Michael Scully, Bob and Lisa Semple, Dr. and Mrs. Peter Som, Polly and Bob Sheehan, Mr. and Mrs. Peter Gonzalez, Anne Rapp, Jean Shafiroff, Michel Witmer, and interior designers Jonathan Tait and Jennifer Bradford Davis.

All enjoyed cocktails and Glorious Food selections including Curried Chicken Tartlets with Coconut and Mint, Smoked Salmon on Tarragon Buttered Toast, Tartlets of Sautéed Wild Mushrooms and other favorites as they gather among one of the most glamorous showcases in the world for top-flight art and antiques.

Barbara McLaughlin, The Fund’s president, thanked everyone for their support. Anna and Brian Haughton the organizers of the International Fine Arts and Antique Dealers Show were also on hand to greet the crowd who viewed the prestigious “International Show” which continues to be one of the most glamorous showcases in America for top dealers from Europe and the USA for the past 22 years. It is a must for collectors, connoisseurs, museum curators and interior designers the world over.

Fund for Park Avenue Board: Ronald D. Spencer, Chairman, Mary Davidson, Eugenie Niven Goodman, Derek Limbocker, Helena Martinez, James McCollom, Jr., Judith Steckler, and Margaret Ternes and Jo-Ann Polise, Executive Director.

Park Avenue Tree Lighting Committee: Muffie Potter and Dr. Sherrell J. Aston, David Rockefeller, Michael E. Scully, Daisy Soros, Joanne Woodward, Jane Wyeth, Fernanda Kellogg and Kirk Henckels, Hugh D. Auchincloss, John Atwater Bradley, Mr. and Mrs. Bates Brown, Patricia Burnham, Catherine and Bryan J. Carey, Stephanie and Fred Clark, Mrs. Charles Dana, Jr., Catherine and Douglas Davis, Eleanor Acquavella Dejoux, Debbie Fechter, Amy Mazzola Flynn, Jamie Gibbs, Martha Vietor Glass, Christopher Gray , Mrs. Mark Hampton, Madeleine Rudin Johnson, Victoria and Douglas Larson, Roman Martinez IV, Vanessa and Stuart McLean , Mr. and Mrs. Lester Morse, Jr., Melinda Nelson, Lisa Podos, Mrs. Warrie Price, N. Anthony Rolfe, Pat and John Rosenwald, Mrs. Arnold Schwartz, Muriel Siebert, Polly Vietor Sheehan, Samantha McLean Spruance, Mr. and Mrs. Thomas W. Strauss, John C. Whitehead, and Mr. and Mrs. H. Joe Witte.

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