It’s one thing to donate money, or even time, to a charitable cause. But it’s another thing entirely to spearhead the entire charity and donate endless hours of time and a lot of money to a worthy cause–and consistently show up. That’s what Natasha Koifman does. As the force behind NKPR and of our past VIBE cover stars, one of Toronto’s largest public relations firms, Koifman integrates kindness and good acts into her business, offering guests of her press previews the chance to write uplifting notes to those who are struggling and spotlighting a lot of noble causes. And Suzanne Boyd is Zoomer Magazine’s editor-in-chief and a publishing world star in her own right. But she, too, takes time out of her packed schedule to ensure that she’s giving back to a cause close to her heart.
Koifman is also the president of the Artists for Peace and Justice and the co-chair of its annual gala, a duty she performs along with her longtime friend Boyd. APJ is a leading non-profit organization dedicated to peace, social justice, and providing education in Haiti. Koifman has a star-studded list of celebrities and supporters of APJ, too, including Ben Stiller, Susan Sarandon, and Jackson Browne. This year’s gala took place on Saturday, September 9th at a private residence. Managing it all, Koifman says, comes from a desire to help.
“The charity was started 15 years ago, which would have been in 2009, before the earthquake hit in Haiti. I decided to throw the first fundraiser for a country that I had never visited, not fully understanding how devastated it was other than people telling me that children and families are living on $1 a day, children are dying of malnutrition,” Koifman says. “And so I did the first fundraiser back in 2009, during the Toronto Film Festival.
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“That evening raised $50,000. I pulled in sort of every favour I could to put on that event. So as much money could go back to the children of Haiti. Then you fast forward six months later, and then the earthquake hit in Haiti in January,” Koifman continues. “And an already devastated country was even more devastated. Hundreds of people had lost their lives. Millions of people were displaced. And it was at that moment that we held another fundraiser.”
She tapped her celebrity connections, from Ben Stiller to Barbra Streisand to Nicole Kidman, and the group of stars quickly pledged $50,000 a year for five years. Those contributions helped Koifman and the charity build the first free high school in Haiti.
“We thought that the way to help the Haitian people was through education and to help educate the youth,” Koifman says. “We originally planned to have 300 students in our school. And we thought that was really great and awesome. Well, 300 students turned into 1000 students, which turned into 1500 students. And now we have over 3500 students a year in our school. Fast forward 15 years later, where we’ve helped 27,000 students get an education.”
In total, Koifman, Boyd and the AJP have raised over $35 million, and many people, including local talent Nelly Furtado and Director X, contribute to the cause, all driven by a desire to make change. “I realized that education is the key to unlocking potential, and I wanted to be a part of that,” Boyd says.
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Boyd and Koifman have visited the high school themselves, and the growth and pride and emotions they saw on their trip have stayed with both of them for the entire duration of their respective tenures with AJP. “We went to the school and saw the graduating class and just to see, on the ground, the difference that having that refuge makes and having that place to go and get an education – to really feel that you’re helping yourself so you can lift yourself up was so powerful,” Boyd says.
The AJP is unique in the sense that it’s transparent about where the money goes, and Koifman and Boyd believe that proving that the funds raised make real, tangible change is important in charity work, allowing everyone involved to see the contribution every kind of donation makes.
It’s also important, Boyd notes, to help in a way that maintains everyone’s dignity. It’s not about swooping in to save someone, but about giving someone the tools to take care of himself or herself. To live a life they choose to live. And that, in a way, drives Boyd.
“It’s always feeling just so much gratitude that we can do what we do. It’s just an accident of birth, you know, where you happen to end up or who you happen to end up with in your family. So that’s one thing, I’m forever grateful that I do have the ability to do what I can and do it how we do it.”
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