NARSAD Chosen To Benefit From Unique 9/11 Fundraising Event By BGC Partners, USA

Main Category: Mental Health
Also Included In: Bipolar;  Schizophrenia
Article Date: 08 Sep 2007 - 1:00 PDT

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NARSAD: The Mental Health Research Association is among a handful of organizations to benefit from a one-of-a-kind charitable event commemorating 9/11.

NARSAD, which is the world's leading charity for mental health research, has been selected by BGC Partners, a leading inter-dealer broker, to receive a portion of the firm's trading commissions generated this coming Tuesday, September 11th.

BGC's generosity honors the great sacrifices made on September 11th, 2001. The firm is named for B. Gerald Cantor, the late philanthropist and founder and chairman of the securities firm Cantor Fitzgerald, which lost 658 employees at the World Trade Center disaster. BGC Partners is a Cantor Fitzgerald subsidiary.

Last year, BGC and Cantor Fitzgerald offices worldwide raised $5 million in a single day, contributing the entire amount to charitable organizations. "This year," said Danny LaVecchia, president of BGC North America, "BGC is honored to include NARSAD as one of the selected charities for its annual Charity Day in New York.

"NARSAD was chosen as it is the leading organization for research into mental illness and in the forefront of efforts to develop better treatments and cures. With an impressive Scientific Council that includes former Nobel Prize winners and former directors of the National Institute of Mental Health, NARSAD works hard to advance the understanding and treatment of diseases that are often little understood. With every cent of funds raised by the charity going toward this very important cause, BGC views NARSAD as a very worthy recipient of a contribution from this fundraising event."

Geoff Birkett, NARSAD's president and CEO, expressed his gratitude to BGC on behalf of the organization and its constituents. "By designating NARSAD and other worthy charities as beneficiaries of Charity Day, BGC has done something quite touching and very meaningful to honor the memory of those tragically lost on 9/11, not least those of Cantor Fitzgerald, whose story has touched millions of hearts. The cutting-edge research that BGC's generosity will make possible will bring us closer to better treatments and cures for mental illnesses. For this, we thank the firm and all of its employees."

NARSAD supports research on depression, PTSD and other anxiety disorders, childhood mental disorders, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia.

In the six years since the 9/11 tragedy, Cantor Fitzgerald and BGC have distributed $180 million to families of employees lost in the World Trade Center attacks. A portion of the funds raised on Charity Day this year will be directed to the ongoing employee Relief Fund.

NARSAD: The Mental Health Research Association raises funds to accelerate the search for better treatments and cures for a wide range of serious mental illnesses. Celebrating its 20th year, NARSAD began distributing research grants in 1987 as the National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia and Depression. Since then, NARSAD has given nearly $220 million in grants to 2,284 scientists at 415 universities and medical research institutions in the United States and 26 other countries.

For additional information on the work of NARSAD, the research it supports and various mental disorders, visit the organization's website at http://www.narsad.org.