BEVERLY HILLS, CA - NOVEMBER 05: (L-R) Kate Capshaw, Oprah Winfrey, and Steven Spielberg attend the Ambassadors For Humanity Gala Benefiting USC Shoah Foundation Honoring Rita Wilson And Tom Hanks at The Beverly Hilton Hotel on November 5, 2018 in Beverly Hills, California.
The show began with a powerful introduction from Oprah Winfrey, who took time to acknowledge each of the honorees and the impactful work they’ve done to educate and inspire change in their communities. The night was filled with poignant moments and speeches, punctuated with humor from the evening’s host.
BEVERLY HILLS, CA - NOVEMBER 05: (L-R) Tom Ford, Oprah Winfrey, honorees Tom Hanks, and Rita Wilson attend the Ambassadors For Humanity Gala Benefiting USC Shoah Foundation Honoring Rita Wilson And Tom Hanks at The Beverly Hilton Hotel on November 5, 2018 in Beverly Hills, California.
“Their commitment to veterans, in particular, dovetails with the Institute’s mission to give voice to the many men and women of World War II whose stories of heroism are represented in our Visual History Archive®,” Steven Spielberg said. “Rita and Tom quietly and consistently leverage their artistry and talents to inform and inspire positive change in the world.”
Wilson and Hanks’ acceptance speech offered thanks to their fellow honorees, along with their friends and hosts Steven Spielberg and Kate Capshaw. They stressed the necessity of organizations like the Shoah Foundation amidst the current political climate. “We don’t know what’s going to happen [on election day],” said Hanks, “but we do know that we have an engine, a motor, that gives us the guide to join in the mission of Shoah Foundation and form a more perfect union.”
BEVERLY HILLS, CA - NOVEMBER 05: Tom Hanks (L) and Martin Short attend the Ambassadors For Humanity Gala Benefiting USC Shoah Foundation Honoring Rita Wilson And Tom Hanks at The Beverly Hilton Hotel on November 5, 2018 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Michael Kovac/Getty Images)
Of meeting the students from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School before the ceremony, they said, “we wish we were not meeting them. We wish they were just anonymous kids from Parkland, Florida. But the fact that they are here and sharing their story by way of, and through, the Shoah Foundation, is just another testimony of their work and the extraordinary strength and courage of those students.”
The Ambassadors for Humanity event is a crucial part of the Institute’s efforts, helping to forge partnerships and to raise essential unrestricted funds that sustain the organization into the future.
The Gala’s call to action this year was USC Shoah Foundation’s Stronger Than Hate initiative, created by Steven Spielberg. This effort dramatically scales the Institute’s proven testimony-based resources to meet the needs of educators on the front lines dealing with the rising crises of hatred.
BEVERLY HILLS, CA - NOVEMBER 05: (L-R) George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, Rita Wilson, and Tom Hanks attend the Ambassadors For Humanity Gala Benefiting USC Shoah Foundation Honoring Rita Wilson And Tom Hanks at The Beverly Hilton Hotel on November 5, 2018 in Beverly Hills, California.
Ivy Schamis, a Holocaust and social studies teacher from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, who uses the Institute’s IWitness educational platform in her classroom, received the organization’s inaugural Stronger Than Hate Educator Award at the event. She was joined by some of her students who were among the survivors of the Feb. 14, 2018, shooting at their school.
“Each of this year’s honorees embody USC Shoah Foundation’s mission of remembrance,” said Wanda M. Austin, interim president of the University of Southern California. “We were delighted to recognize Rita Wilson and Tom Hanks, as well as Ivy Schamis, for their efforts to foster compassion and understanding. The Institute is an integral part of USC, and we are proud to join our trustee, Steven Spielberg, and Kate Capshaw in advancing its important work.”
BEVERLY HILLS, CA - NOVEMBER 05: (L-R) Mellody Hobson, George Lucas, Kate Capshaw, Steven Spielberg, Rita Wilson, and Tom Hanks attend the Ambassadors For Humanity Gala Benefiting USC Shoah Foundation Honoring Rita Wilson And Tom Hanks at The Beverly Hilton Hotel on November 5, 2018 in Beverly Hills, California.
Stephen Smith, USC Shoah Foundation Finci-Viterbi Endowed Executive Director, lauded Schamis for her longstanding commitment to Holocaust education.
“Ivy is an inspirational educator who engages students to recognize injustices when they occur, and to become active participants in society,” he said. “Teachers like Ivy are at the forefront of our mission of teaching empathy and tolerance to future generations. It is an honor to share this special evening with her.”
BEVERLY HILLS, CA - NOVEMBER 05: Oprah Winfrey attends the Ambassadors For Humanity Gala Benefiting USC Shoah Foundation Honoring Rita Wilson And Tom Hanks at The Beverly Hilton Hotel on November 5, 2018 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Michael Kovac/Getty Images)
About USC Shoah Foundation
USC Shoah Foundation—The Institute for Visual History and Educations develops empathy, understanding and respect through testimony, using its Visual History Archive of more than 55,000 video testimonies, award-winning IWitness education program, and Center for Advanced Genocide Research. USC Shoah Foundation’s interactive programming, research, and materials are accessed in museums and universities, cited by government leaders and NGOs, and taught in classrooms around the world. Now in its third decade, USC Shoah Foundation reaches millions of people each year on six continents from its home at the Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences at the University of Southern California.
BEVERLY HILLS, CA - NOVEMBER 05: Ron Howard (L) and Brian Grazer attend the Ambassadors For Humanity Gala Benefiting USC Shoah Foundation Honoring Rita Wilson And Tom Hanks at The Beverly Hilton Hotel on November 5, 2018 in Beverly Hills, California.
About Stronger Than Hate
Stronger Than Hate is an initiative of USC Shoah Foundation that serves as a broad, proactive, actionable response to the rising crises of hatred. It reaches educators, students, policy makers, influencers, and the public at large via schools, universities, communities, and boardrooms, both virtually and in person, and around the world. Stronger Than Hate focuses resources and leverages partnerships to strengthen and unify people against hate. USC Shoah Foundation, as a global leader in testimony-driven, transformational learning, is uniquely positioned to impact an essential and growing audience in their struggle to become Stronger Than Hate.