our vision

The 4th Annual New York City Imagine Awards, the premier event that shines the spotlight on the nonprofit sector, was held on Tuesday, October 29, 2024 at Guastavino’s. This gala event was created to offer formal acknowledgment to some of the City’s most effective and innovative nonprofit organizations. 501(c)(3) nonprofits located in and/or significantly serving The Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens or Staten Island were eligible to apply across six categories: Arts & Culture; DEIA (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and/or Accessibility); Innovation; Leadership Excellence; Rising Star; & Social Impact. The winner in each category won a $5,000 grant. In addition, the 24 finalists, 4 in each category, each received a professionally produced video, which was showcased the night of the event, and thanks to Webster Bank's Diamond Sponsorship finalists were awarded with $1,000 as well.

The Imagine Awards is an award program that
was designed for 3 reasons:

 

1

To shine a spotlight on those nonprofits that are truly unique those with strong leadership, who are innovative in their actions and operations, who are impactful on both a micro and macro perspective, who are significantly advancing programs and the sector on a regular basis, who think out of the box, and who understand the need to effectively collaborate to leverage results.

2

To foster relationships having the ability for nonprofit leadership to come together and communicate, to see what each other are doing, to share ideas, and to find ways to effectively work and collaborate with each other creates a more integrated and stronger sector for all of us.

3

To provide education it’s a little bit of a cliché, but we don’t know what we don’t know. Nonprofit leadership is often focused on the day to day needs of their organization and don’t always have a place to turn or an avenue to bounce questions off of. The Imagine Awards offers this through idea sharing, access to winners (Let’s Imagine Event), and more.

The Imagine Awards not only provides a $5,000 check to the winner in each category, it provides a professionally developed video to each finalist, it provides an avenue to collaborate and explore, it provides exposure and recognition to the finalists and the sector, and it provides a night where the light is shine in on the sector to spotlight all the amazing things that are happening in the nonprofit community. Imagine Awards participants have developed new partnerships and collaborations, have made corporate connections which has resulted in new board members and contributions, have gain strategic insight into what other organizations are doing, and have developed new friendships and relationships that have proven essential in the growth and development of their organizations.

MEET THE FOUNDER

Ken Cerini

Ken Cerini, CPA, CFP, FABFA
Managing Partner, Cerini & Associates, LLP

Ken Cerini is the founder and managing partner of Cerini & Associates, LLP. Like many of the nonprofits he serves, Ken is passionate about making a difference, believing that it is important to be deeply invested in every client relationship and providing real value to each of his clients. He is one of the top accountants/consultants in the State of New York working with special education providers, is well versed in nonprofit issues, and also is heavily involved in the healthcare industry.

OUR SUCCESS ON LONG ISLAND

The Long Island Imagine Awards was founded 12 years ago by Ken Cerini, Managing Partner of Cerini & Associates, LLP. Ken’s vision was to shine a spotlight on the often overlooked nonprofit organizations that do so much for the Suffolk and Nassau communities. Since its inception the Long Island Imagine Awards has been a hugely successful event, not just for the $5,000 award winners but also due to the free promotional videos each finalist receives, the networking at the gala, and giving nonprofits who may not be well known more exposure.

SPONSOR

Sponsorship Information

FOR INFORMATION ON THE 4TH ANNUAL NYC IMAGINE AWARDS PLEASE CONTACT HILLARY NEEDLE:

(516) 993-4056 | [email protected]

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