United Way of Miami-Dade Presents Highest Philanthropic Honor to Darlene & Jorge M. Pérez

Photography by Ryan Troy on February 23rd, 2017 in Celebrity, Lifestyle

Jorge Pérez & Marc Anthony

Miami, FL – February 16, 2017 – Darlene Boytell-Pérez and Jorge M. Pérez received United Way of Miami-Dade’s highest honor, the Tocqueville Award for Outstanding Philanthropy during the Tocqueville Grand Reception at the home of Jayne and Leonard Abess. The reception brings together 400 of Miami’s most generous givers that make up United Way’s Tocqueville Society, and contribute $10,000 or more annually to better the community through United Way’s work in education, financial stability and health. The reception was underwritten by Van Cleef & Arpels and Ed Ansin. Jorge Pérez was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, to Cuban parents. He is the founder, chairman and CEO of The Related Group, Florida’s top multi-family developer and the largest Hispanic-owned business in the United States. Darlene Boytell-Pérez is a Miami native. She is an advanced registered nurse practitioner and clinical researcher with more than 20 years of experience specializing in gastroenterology and the Hepatitis C virus. Pérez is deeply involved in supporting Miami’s ongoing cultural renaissance, sponsoring programs like the Miami International Film Festival’s Emerging Cuban Independent Film/Video Artists Program and The National Young Arts Foundation’s Residency in Visual Arts. Most notable, Pérez donated $40 million to the Herzog & de Meuron-designed Pérez Art Museum Miami or PAMM. Pérez has also signed on to The Giving Pledge, a campaign founded by Warren Buffett and Bill Gates, to which he will donate 50 percent of his wealth for philanthropic purposes. Darlene and Jorge have both excelled at their respective professions, while always shining a positive light on our city by supporting the arts, education and health initiatives. Jorge has been involved with United Way of Miami-Dade for more than two decades; together, they joined the United Way Million Dollar Roundtable in 2003 and the Five Million Dollar Roundtable in 2011