City Parks Foundation Announces 2018 Gala, Honoring Steven Tyler and BNP Paribas with Jean-Yves Fillion

New York: City Parks Foundation is pleased to announce their 2018 Gala fundraiser, taking place Monday, June 18 in Central Park, with dinner and a concert under the stars at their flagship SummerStage venue. This year's event will honor BNP Paribas with Jean-Yves Fillion, CEO, BNP Paribas USA and Head of CIB Americas, and rock legend, advocate, and philanthropist

Steven Tyler. Mr. Tyler and Nashville based The Loving Mary Band will perform an intimate concert for guests. City Parks Foundation (CPF), through its SummerStage Festival, is the largest presenter of free arts and cultural programs in New York City parks, and serves 425,000 New Yorkers each year through arts, education, sports and community building initiatives.

City Parks Foundation is proud to honor Bronx native Steven Tyler with the first ever "SummerStage Icon" Award, for his enormous contributions to our city's -- and our country's -- cultural landscape, and for his tireless efforts as an avid advocate and philanthropist. An accomplished singer, songwriter, author and actor, Tyler is a member of both the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Songwriters Hall of Fame and has multiple Grammy Awards to his name. As a solo artist and as a member of the legendary rock band Aerosmith, Tyler has sold more than 150 million records worldwide and he has used his global platform to support humanitarian causes near to his heart. In 2015, Tyler founded the philanthropic initiative Janie's Fund, in partnership with Youth Villages, to bring hope and healing to girls who have suffered the trauma of abuse and neglect. And in 2016, the United Nations honored Tyler with their Humanitarian Award on behalf of this important work. Tyler is also deeply involved in the fight to protect the rights of established and emerging songwriters as a member of the GRAMMY Creators' Alliance, and he is a dedicated advocate for raising awareness of addiction issues and recovery solutions. City Parks Foundation is honored to celebrate Mr. Tyler for his humanitarian efforts to serve and uplift vulnerable communities, and for his global impact on the arts.

City Parks Foundation is also proud to honor BNP Paribas with Jean-Yves Fillion, CEO, BNP Paribas USA and Head of CIB Americas, with the "People and Parks" Award. BNP Paribas, a leading European bank, employs over 16,000 people in the US across its wholesale businesses and its retail banks - Bank of the West and First Hawaiian, with over 4000 employees based in the NY metro area. Under Mr. Fillion's leadership, BNP Paribas has been a dedicated participant in the joint CPF and NYC Parks program, Partnerships for Parks, sending hundreds of employee volunteers to help beautify and improve under-resourced parks across all five boroughs each year. BNP Paribas is also a lead supporter of the CityParks Tennis program, which provides more than 6,000 New York City youth with free sports instruction every year. BNP's support extends far beyond dollars, providing access to tournaments and year-round training opportunities for dedicated participants. City Parks Foundation is proud to honor Mr. Fillion and BNP Paribas for their immense contributions to invigorating New York City's parks and the communities that use them.

"BNP Paribas has had a tremendous 10 year partnership with City Parks Foundation through volunteer programs across the five boroughs and our engagement with CityParks Tennis," said Jean-Yves Fillion, Chief Executive Officer, BNP Paribas USA and Head of CIB Americas. "This more recent collaboration mirrors BNP Paribas' commitment to the sport of Tennis for which it is recognized as a leading global sponsor. All the partnerships conducted with City Parks Foundation have provided BNP Paribas and its employees with much enjoyment, engagement and learning, and hopefully have benefited New York City's parks and those who enjoy them every day. I am very grateful for this recognition on behalf of BNP Paribas."

Following the evening's award ceremony, Steven Tyler and The Loving Mary Band will take the stage for an intimate concert at the SummerStage venue in Central Park. The concert will serve as Tyler's only New York City performance date on his upcoming solo tour.

"We are thrilled to be able to recognize two incredible partners, BNP Paribas' Jean-Yves Fillion and Steven Tyler, for their enormous contributions to our city's culture and our community," said Heather Lubov, Executive Director of City Parks Foundation. "We are looking forward to publicly celebrating their achievements, and of course, to capping off the evening with an intimate performance by Steven Tyler himself."

City Parks Foundation's 2018 Gala is co-chaired by Lisa and David Barse, Bonnie and Steven Beer, Claire Pellegrini Cloud and Rusty Cloud, Gary Krantz, Lori and David Moore, Jean and Raymond Troubh, and Louisa and John Troubh.

WHEN: Monday, June 18, 2018

6:30 - 8:50 pm, Cocktail Reception & Dinner

8:50 pm, Concert

WHERE: SummerStage in Central Park

Rumsey Playfield, enter at E. 72nd Street and Fifth Ave

TICKETS: Tables and tickets for the evening, including the dinner and concert, are now available for purchase.

For more information, visit CityParksFoundation.org.

At City Parks Foundation, we are dedicated to invigorating and transforming parks into dynamic, vibrant centers of urban life through sports, arts, community development, and education programs for all New Yorkers. Our programs -- located in more than 350 parks, recreation centers, and public schools across New York City -- reach 425,000 people each year. Our ethos is simple: we believe thriving parks mean thriving communities.

BNP Paribas has built a strong and diversified presence in the United States to support its client base. The bank employs over 16,000 people and has had a presence in the USA since the late 1800s. Bank of the West and First Hawaiian Bank (together BancWest, part of Retail Banking & Services) serve nearly 2.5 million individuals and businesses through a network of more than 650 branches and business centers. Large corporate and institutional clients are serviced by BNP Paribas' Corporate & Institutional Banking franchise that has a presence in the main US cities, in addition to a global reach through a network of offices in EMEA and APAC. The bank also offers asset management services through BNP Paribas Asset Management (part of Retail Banking & Services) as well as Real Estate and Fleet Services through partnerships. www.usa.bnpparibas