The Pay It Forward Black Tie Affair: Honoring Leaders, Funding the Work

Every community has people who build quietly: the business owner who hires from the neighborhood, the founder who mentors on weekends, the nonprofit leader who turns small budgets into big outcomes. On Thursday, December 8, 2022, Gentlemen's Factory put on black tie to say their names out loud.

The Pay It Forward Black Tie Affair brought our community to a brick-and-timber ballroom in DUMBO, Brooklyn, for an evening with a two-part mission printed on the program: celebrating business leaders and raising money for nonprofits disrupting the status quo in NYC and beyond. The night was powered by TD Bank, with Beam Suntory as a sponsor.

Arrival: the red carpet

Guests walked in past a black-and-gold balloon arch and giant illuminated GF letters, then onto a red carpet in front of the TD Bank, Beam Suntory and Gentlemen's Factory step-and-repeat. Tuxedos, gowns and Gentlemen's Factory lapel pins set the tone before the first toast.

The bar and the table

Inside, the bar was crowned with a Gentlemen's Factory ice sculpture and a gold CHEERS marquee. Tropical rum punch and champagne were poured all night, and a long charcuterie spread anchored the room.

The program

Live music carried the evening, with a DJ, a band and a trumpet player setting the pace between speeches. Jeff Lindor, founder and CEO of Gentlemen's Factory, took the podium to welcome the room, and the program moved between remarks, music and the moment everyone came for: the awards.

Honoring the builders

Each honoree received a Pay It Forward award, engraved with their name, the date and two words that sum up the Gentlemen's Factory mission: Let's Build. Honorees included Sunshine Foss of Happy Cork, Johanne Brierre, Brandon Hurst and Coach Ted Gustus, among the leaders recognized for what they have built and what they give back.

Giving on the spot

The second half of the mission happened in real time. A QR code went up on the big screen, and guests gave from their seats to support nonprofits doing the work in our community.

Then, the dance floor

Once the awards were handed out and the giving was done, the chairs emptied and the dance floor filled. It was the kind of night that reminds you why community matters: people who work hard all year, celebrating each other in the same room.

Why it matters

Paying it forward is how communities compound. The leaders we honored built businesses and institutions that create jobs, opportunity and pride. The nonprofits we raised money for reach the people who need it most. Gentlemen's Factory exists to connect the two, and to keep Black and Brown men at the center of that work through our cohorts, events and research.

Thank you to TD Bank for powering the night, to Beam Suntory for sponsoring it, to our honorees for the example they set, and to every guest who gave.