On Thursday, November 17, members of Tao Group Hospitality slept in an unusual and uncomfortable place for a good cause. Judy Tepperberg, Jennifer Rucker, Steve Lugerner, Yvonne Najor, Gabby Fernando, Kim Kurlanchik-Russen, Rich Fleming, Addie Fleming and Charles Lerner slept on the pavement outside 7 World Trade Center to raise money and awareness for the Covenant House – a nonprofit that provides shelter, food, and crisis care for homeless youth. In Los Angeles, Chief Marketing Officer Pavan Pardasani and Devon White did the same to show their support.

Tao Group Hospitality Cares, the philanthropic and charitable arm of Tao Group Hospitality, rallied a national team that was able to raise over $118,000 toward the organization! That commitment and dedication translates into safe shelter, warm meals, education and workforce development opportunities, mental health support and enriching programming for all of the youth at the shelter.

Covenant House has been on a mission to help the homeless youth around the country for 50 years. The reasons are obvious when looking at the stats:

  • In America, 7 young people become homeless each minute, which is 11,000 youth per day and 4.2 million young people each year
  • 1 in 5 young people facing homelessness experience human trafficking
  • 2% of the world population experiences homelessness at any moment and 20% lack sufficient shelter
  • Young people who identify as Black and African-American are 83% more likely to experience homelessness
  • 22% of the youth at Covenant House identify as LGBTQ+

This year’s Sleep Out isn’t the first that the company has taken part in and we continuously strive to bring light to important causes.

To learn more about the Covenant House and donate to a great cause, visit our team page at: https://www.sleepout.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=cms.page&id=1460.