Lighthouse Guild’s Annual Palm Beach Visionary Evening Salutes the Arts

Lighthouse Guild hosted its annual Palm Beach Visionary Evening at Club Collette on February 26, 2024.  

The gala honored art collector and curator Beth DeWoody, renowned photographer Firooz Zahedi, and Palm Beach Symphony Maestro Gerard Schwarz, for their accomplishments and contributions to the arts.  Event co-chairs were Jennifer and Ambassador David Fischer, Audrey and Martin Gruss, Jackie Weld Drake, James R. Borynack and Adolfo Zaralegui, Thomas C. Quick, and David and Sondra Mack. 

Marc Rosen, Founder of the Palm Beach Friends of Lighthouse Guild, welcomed the guests and told them they would be treated to a special cabaret performance by Seth Sikes and Billy Stritch later that evening. He then introduced James Dubin, Chairman of Lighthouse Guild, who expressed gratitude for the attendees’ support, recognized the honorees, and presented Dr. Calvin W. Roberts, considered a trailblazer in the field of vision and technology, who serves as Lighthouse Guild’s President and CEO. 

Roberts spoke about how technology has been helping empower people who are blind and visually impaired and provided a sculpture, a visual arts example facilitated through the work of sculptor Bonnie Collura and her team at Together, Tacit, which developed a haptic glove that enables artists who are blind or visually impaired to collaborate with a sighted partner and sculpt with “virtual clay.” 

Then he introduced Jennifer Fischer, Lighthouse Guild’s International Ambassador, who noted DeWoody’s and Zahedi’s prominence in the visual arts community, and presented them with their awards. Next, Dr. Roberts presented Maestro Schwarz, a prolific composer and Grammy-nominated conductor, with his award.

Rosen returned to introduce Kiana Glanton, a longtime Lighthouse Guild client who serves as its Development Intern.  Glanton shared that a Lighthouse Guild staff member who recognized her need for peer support, introduced her to blind baseball, and she became immediately hooked. After two months of practice, Glanton made Team USA in the first world championship, and she helped the team earn the U.S. its first and only medal in the sport.  She acknowledged Lighthouse Guild for underwriting and sponsoring her participation.

After dinner, Marc Rosen acknowledged Tom Quick’s birthday and arranged for the performers to serenade him with a heartfelt “Happy Birthday,” before Quick conducted the live auction. The evening ended on a sweet note with dessert and the cabaret performance.

The 2024 Palm Beach Visionary Evening, drew 180 guests and raised more than $500,000 in support of Lighthouse Guild’s programs and services.