2024 Bright Young People
The Free for All, formerly known as the Allies Ball, is the largest fundraising activity for Allies for Health + Wellbeing and celebrates a year of support for the local HIV service organization and medical clinic. Allies for Health + Wellbeing also will be using its event to honor 10 individuals as its third constellation of Bright Young People.
The original Bright Young People were young socialites in the 1920s and -30s, known for throwing outrageous, over-the-top parties, as well as their attempts to change the status quo, especially within the arts. Allies is reimagining the Bright Young People of today as a constellation of excellence – people who are making a real and tangible difference in our community and working toward a bright future, particularly in the realm of diversity, equity and inclusion. The Bright Young People are making their mark through their art, their careers and their activism.
The 2024 Bright Young People include:
- Naomi Ruth Allen (she/her/hers), KRUNK Movement assistant coordinator, Center of Life
- Daequan Andino (he/him/his), coordinator of programs and volunteers, Shepherd Wellness
- Jule Arney (xe/xyr/xem, they/them/theirs), director of training and research at Hugh Lane Wellness Foundation
- Duane Binion (he/him/his), co-founder and co-executive director of True T Pgh
- Hazell Azzer Carpenter-Saunders (Hazell), community outreach and engagement coordinator, AIDS Free Pittsburgh/Jewish Healthcare Foundation
- Dev Hayostek, LSW (he/him/his, they/them/theirs), lead prevention educator in the Office for Sexual Violence Prevention & Education, University of Pittsburgh
- Saint-Osei Valentino (he/him/his, they/them/theirs), community health mentor, Allies for Health + Wellbeing and co-founder and executive director of Black Liberation Autonomous Collective (BLAC)
- Rian-Louis McNeil (he/him/his), outreach coordinator, Amachi Pittsburgh, and podcaster
- Elis O’Marehen (she/her/hers, they/them/theirs), therapist, Open Space Counseling, Consulting and Wellness
- Stavi Xinos (Stavi), master of social work student, University of Pittsburgh, and intern, The Open Door
"Each year, we are amazed by the applications we receive for the Bright Young People program,” said Sean DeYoung, CEO of Allies for Health + Wellbeing. “It is so inspiring to see the work that young people are doing in Pittsburgh to make southwestern Pennsylvania a better place for all its citizens, regardless of their race, gender or sexual orientation. As we honor these 10 Bright Young People this year, we are proud to be a small part of their journeys, and we look forward to seeing the the bright futures they have in store."
The Bright Young People will be guests of honor at the Free for All, which will be at 6 p.m. on Friday, May 3, at the Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh, 10 Children’s Way, Pittsburgh.
"The Free for All provides an opportunity to celebrate the work that we’ve done over the past year as well as those who make that work possible, including our generous partners,” DeYoung said.
Lead partners of the Free for All are UPMC Health Plan and UPMC Community Care Behavioral Health Organization. Additional partners include All Occasions Party Rental, Thommy Conroy, Duolingo and Gilead Sciences.
“Not only does the continued support of our partners allow us to serve those who are living with or at risk of HIV, hepatitis C and other sexually transmitted infections, but it grants us the opportunity to use our platform to amplify the voices and the work of the Bright Young People,” DeYoung said. “We hope that as the Bright Young People continue to thrive on their chosen paths, we can all work together to bring an end to the HIV epidemic.”