January 12, 2019, New York City: The Ellis Island Honors Society and American Immigrant Society held its first annual Beacon Awards at Battery Gardens hosted by Dr Oz. The awards honored first and second generation Americans who have disrupted business as usual and have changed the way we perceive their industries and professions.
This year’s honorees included:
- Jennifer Fleiss (co-founder and CEO of Jetblack)
- Daphne Oz (celebrity chef and television personality)
- Allison Pataki (New York Times bestselling author), and more.
After Dr. Oz opened the ceremony, Nasser Kazeminy, the chairman of the Ellis Island Honors Society, set the tone for the night, stating, “America is a country built on immigrants that brought courage, ambition, strong work ethics, appreciation for family, and peace with them as they embarked on a new journey. Our honorees are the brightest minds in science, medicine, law, entertainment, and technology. They all have different skills but they have one thing in common: they use their extraordinary skills to give back to America and that’s why we thank them. Since the founding of Ellis Island, and even further back, immigrants have brought their courage, ambition, a strong work ethic, an appreciation of family and community, and most importantly, a deeply felt desire for peace and freedom. These ideals, built into the foundations of this country by our founders, are what attracted the brave and determined for generations.”
As each honoree accepted their award throughout the night, they shared stories about coming from a family of immigrants and how that inspired them to take action and help others. In her speech, Daphne Oz talked about what that meant to her and how it taught her two things—fearlessness and faith, “fearlessness in taking risks and faith that it will all pan out.”
