DC Finance Hosts Live Discus sions During the COVID-19 Crisis

Anousheh Ansari

Nannette De Gaspe Beaubien

DC Finance Hosts Live Discussions During the COVID-19 Crisis

For the past five years, Desirée Patno, CEO of NAWRB & Chairwoman of NDILC, has had the honor of representing a voice for the gender lens perspective in the real estate and housing ecosystem at several of the largest events for ultra high net worth individuals and family offices across the globe with one of the world’s leading conference organizers, DC Finance.

As many industry events have been canceled due to the COVID-19 outbreak, DC Finance put together a variety of webinars to keep the family office community informed and engaged during this time. As she “Zoomed In” to the webinars, below are some of the sessions hosted by DC Finance Founder Denny Chared with family office leaders who shared their thoughts and reflections on the impact of the crisis.

April 16th Interview with Tal Kerret, President of Silverstein Properties, Family Member and Entrepreneur Denny Chared began the series of webinars with an interview with Tal Kerret, President of Silverstein Properties Inc., about SilverTech Ventures, which is working to foster a community of successful technology entrepreneurs in New York City. As described Mitzi Perdue on their website, Silvertech Ventures is an “accelerator and venture capital firm focused on helping entrepreneurs grow their companies by respecting the role of the CEO, helping with our network and experience, and most importantly, by being there when needed.”

Silverstein Properties, Inc. is well-known as the developer of the World Trade Center and Four Seasons Walt Disney. Founded in 1957 by Chairman Larry Silverstein, Silverstein Properties has developed, owned and managed more than 40 million square feet of commercial, residential, retail and hotel space. In early 2019, Desirée Patno had the pleasure of receiving a personal tour of the World Trade Center and learned the series of obstacles Silverstein Properties faced.

All about Flight to Quality for real estate acquisitions with your major destination cities of New York, Los Angeles, and Miami.

April 21st Interview with Wendy Federman, Award-Winning Broadway & Film Producer & President of Foolish Mortals Productions Wendy Federman, a Next Gen and one of Broadway’s top producers, shared her story growing as a second generation that has sold the business and went after her dreams

of Broadway, ultimately becoming one of Broadway’s top award winning producers. She shared over 14 billion dollars is generated by Broadway in New York and all the touring companies. Many discussions are ongoing to work through all the logistics on how and when Broadway would reopen.

Wendy Federman is a nine-time Tony Award, seven-time Drama Desk Award, eleven-time Drama League Award, and ten-time Outer Critics Circle Award winning producer. Wendy is a proud member of the John F. Kennedy Center’s National Committee for the Performing Arts whose mission is to fulfill President Kennedy’s vision by producing and presenting the greatest examples of music, dance, and theater; supporting artists in the creation of new work; and serving the nation as a leader in arts education.

April 23rd Interview with Nancy Spielberg, Writer and Producer Nancy Spielberg discussed the film industry during the COVID-19 crisis, growing up in one of the most prominent families in the film and entertainment industry of our time, her experience playing in homemade movies by her brother, and exclusive information on her latest projects.

She wanted to use her talents to produce documentaries and feature films. “The documentary filmmaking world is pure. I choose projects that can help in some way or that have a story that really moves me", stated Nancy Spielberg. She is executive producer of several incredible pieces including "Who Will Write Our History" and "On the Map". Nancy Spielberg is founder and co-founder of several charities including “Children of Chernobyl,” “Project Sunshine” and the American branch of The Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance.

May 12th Dealing with the Challenges of our Time - A Rare Discussion with Two Next Generations Who Became World Leading Family Consultants: David C. Bentall & Nava Michael-Tsabari Two family members of famous families in their country end up becoming the top family consultants in their space: David C. Bentall, Bentall Family Member and Founder of Next Step Advisors, and Nava Michael-Tsabari, Director of the Raya Strauss Center for Family Business Research at The School of Management, Tel Aviv University. Both David and Nava joined in a fascinating discussion with DC Finance Founder Denny Chared on their success stories, and how they navigated challenges in becoming two of the world’s leading family consultants. We are faced with great opportunities brilliantly disguised as impossible situations.

June 4th Woman Entrepreneurship, Space Travel and the Opportunities During a World Pandemic Anousheh Ansari, Entrepreneur, Businesswoman, Space Traveler, and CEO of XPRIZE Foundation. The family office community listened in to Anousheh Ansari’s fascinating discussion about women’s entrepreneurship, space travel and opportunities available during the global health crisis. She first captured headlines around the world as the first female private space explorer, and she earned her place in history as the fourth private explorer to visit space and the first astronaut of Iranian descent. Everything is all about space!

In addition to being a private space explorer, Anousheh is a serial entrepreneur and Co-Founder and Chairman of Prodea Systems, a company that will unleash the power of the Internet to all consumers and dramatically alter and simplify consumer’s digital living experience.

June 11th Media, Technology And Innovation David Sable, Fromer Global Chairman, Y&R; WPP Senior Advisor; Author; Entrepreneur; Social Activist The media and technology industries have had to adapt and change significantly during this time. David Sable, the Non-Executive Chairman of VMLY&R, and thought leader at WPP, discusses this historic transition with Denny Chared. Sable previously served as CEO of Y&R, one of the world's largest consumer advertising agencies, and he was named a “Top 20 Must-Know Global Influencer” by LinkedIn, as well as one of the “Top 10 Most Generous Marketing Geniuses” by Fast Company. He also serves on the Boards of Directors of Special Olympics, UNICEF and American Eagle Outfitters.

June 16th Women Entrepreneurship, Family Business and Retail Marketing in Light of Current Challenges Nannette De Gaspe Beaubien Women entrepreneurs and family-owned businesses are struggling to keep afloat during the current COVID-19 pandemic, especially in the retail marketing space as many stores are being forced to be closed to in-person shopping and ecommerce is on the rise. Nannette De Gaspe Beaubien, a seasoned marketing and finance executive with an emphasis on the biotech and beauty industries, shares how she is adapting to, and thriving, this new environment.

From launching her new luxury mask products Nannette de Graspe Beaute, Inc. by working the lobby in one of the most luxurious hotels, she sold ten thousand bottles within the first two weeks. She didn’t know the normal way of marketing and created her own channel based on technology, 85% active ingredients and science.

June 26th

How the Sheraton Family and Perdue have Managed

Past Crisis and Found the Opportunities Within Mitzi Perdue, Next Generation, Businesswoman and Entrepreneur Mitzi Perdue, a Next Gen, Businesswoman and Entrepreneur, who uses her experiences of three long-time family businesses in her career. Her father, Ernest Henderson, was the Co-Founder of the Sheraton Hotel Chain, and her late husband Frank Perdue was the second generation in the poultry company that currently operates in more than 50 countries.

Mitzi holds a Bachelor’s Degree with honors from Harvard University and an MPA from George Washington University. She was the Former President of the 35,000-member American Agri-Women, and Former Syndicated Columnist for Scripps Howard. Her column, The Environment and You, was the most widely-syndicated environmental column in the country. She started the family wine grape business, now one the larger suppliers of wine grapes in California.

In three weeks she wrote her latest book with Mark Victor Hansen “How to Be Up in Down Times” in what she calls ‘pandemic brain’ - when you have a lack of mental clarity, under stress, being in quarantine can lead to PTSD.

The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America by Richard Rothstein The Color of Law reveals the true history of segregation, and how federal, state and local governments gave rise to it, thereby relinquishing the myth of de facto segregation arising from private prejudice or the unintended consequences of economic forces. Rothstein educates readers on how the American government has systematically imposed residential segregation through various means, which will transform their understanding of twentieth-century urban history.

Untamed By Glennon Doyle Untamed is an intimate memoir about a woman’s trials and tribulations as she navigates divorce, forming a blended family and reinventing herself through motherhood and self love. Glennon Doyle’s story tackles the previous notion of what it means to be a woman in this empowering story about a woman’s realization that her life’s purpose is much more than just living for her children; it’s about showing them how to live through her own actions and wellbeing.

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes By Suzanne Collins In this spinoff and prequel of the beloved Hunger Games series, author Suzanne Collins gives us another intimate look into the dystopian world that has lit up imaginations and the big screen in the popular movie adaptation. This novel tells the story of Coriolanus Snow, who was prepared to redeem himself and achieve glory by mentoring a tribute for the Games, is forced to mentor the female tribute from District 12 - using whatever he can to help her win. The Great Starring Elle Fanning, Nicholaus Hoult, Phoebe Fox The Great is a lively American comedy-drama television series based on the rise of Catherine the Great, Empress of Russia and the longest-reigning female ruler in Russia's history. Catherine is a naive outsider from Germany when she marries Peter the Emperor. With her progressive views on society, art and culture, however, she forms a coup to overthrow her husband and lead Russia to greatness.

Never Have I Ever Starring Maitreyi Ramakrishnan, Darren Barnet, Jaren Lewison Created by Mindy Kaling, Never Have I Ever is a charming coming of age comedy-drama television series centered around Devi, an Indian American high school student dealing with the death of her father while experiencing the highs and lows of romantic love, friendship and family. With the help of her loved ones, Devi learns to reconcile her grief, her fraught relationship with her mother and her Indian identity.

Normal People Starring Paul Mescal, Daisy Edgar-Jones, India Mullen Based on the bestselling novel by Sally Rooney, this Irish television drama series follows the irrevocably intertwined lives of protagonists Marianne and Connell, as they navigate adulthood from the same small town in Ireland. They find solace in each other as they experience their own hardships and successes from secondary school through to their undergraduate years of Trinity College.

Racial & Ethnic Disparity in COVID-19 Impact Among Older Adults

The aging population, or older adults age 65 and older, are more at risk for COVID-19 related deaths, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), as they are more likely to have underlying medical conditions which compromise their immune systems, making it more difficult to fight off the virus. As stated by the CDC, “As you get older, your risk for severe illness from COVID-19 increases. For example, people in their 50s are at higher risk for severe illness than people in their 40s. Similarly, people in their 60s or 70s are, in general, at higher risk for severe illness than people in their 50s. The greatest risk for severe illness from COVID-19 is among those aged 85 or older.”

As the bar graph shows below, one’s risk of getting severely ill from COVID-19 increases as you get older. In fact, the CDC reports that 8 out of ten, or 80 percent, of COVID-19-related deaths reported in the United States have been among adults aged 65 years and older.

Because older Americans are disproportionately represented in COVID-19 fatalities, it is important for caregivers and the community at large to help protect the aging population, and make sure they have their needs attended to while staying safe and taking necessary safety precautions.

Racial & Ethnic Disparity Among COVID-19 Impact There has been pre-existing socioeconomic, racial and geographic differences in health and health care access for the older population, which we will review below. Thus, it is not surprising that a global pandemic has only exacerbated these disparities in health and health care access for older adults among the minority population. In fact, the CDC has reported racial and ethnic disparities in the impact of COVID-19.

As the CDC reports on their website, “long-standing systemic health and social inequities have put some members of racial and ethnic minority groups at increased risk of getting COVID-19 or experiencing severe illness, regardless of age.” Among these minority groups, including non-Hispanic Blacks, the Hispanic and Latinx community, and American Indians/Alaska Natives, have experienced higher rates of his hospitalization and death from COVID-19 than non-Hispanic white persons.

At time of writing, the highest age-adjusted hospitalization rates are highest among non-Hispanic American Indian or Alaska Native and non-Hispanic black persons, followed by Hispanic or Latino persons. Below are some eye-opening statistics that cement the racial and ethnic disparity in terms of the health impact of COVID-19:

Non-Hispanic American Indian or Alaska Native persons are five times more likely to be hospitalized by COVID-19 non-Hispanic white persons; Non-Hispanic black persons are also five times more likely to be hospitalized due to COVID-19 than non-Hispanic white persons; and Hispanic or Latinx persons are four times more likely to be hospitalized for COVID-19 than non-Hispanic white persons.

To assist the health of older Americans, we need to address not only medical progress but also implement policies that will reduce socioeconomic, racial and geographic differences in health care access and other opportunities.

The CDC suggests the following for helping to combat the impact of COVID-19 among racial and ethnic minority groups during this time: “History shows that severe illness and death rates tend to be higher for racial and ethnic minority populations during public health emergencies than for other populations. Addressing the needs of these populations in emergencies includes improving dayto-day life and harnessing the strengths of these groups. Shared faith, family, and cultural institutions are common sources of social support.”

Specific actions communities and institutions can take to help include widening access to the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, addressing food deserts, and supporting the return of citizens in the workforce.

Learn more about this topic in the upcoming 2020 NAWRB Women Housing Ecosystem Report!