On Sunday, May 4, the FDNY Foundation — in partnership with SL Green Realty Corp. — proudly hosted the 3rd Annual Climb to SUMMIT at One Vanderbilt in Manhattan. This signature event once again brought together FDNY members, supporters, corporate teams and individuals to take on the challenge of racing up 93 stories — more than 1,100 feet — to the top of SUMMIT One Vanderbilt. There were participants from 12 states and four countries.
With 330 climbers lacing up, the annual event raised more than $300,000 (and counting) in support of firefighter and EMS physical fitness programs, safety education and equipment needs.
“I want to thank the Foundation for everything that it does for the FDNY. I dare say that nothing we accomplish in the Fire Department would be quite as good without the support of the FDNY Foundation,” said FDNY Commissioner Robert S. Tucker, who has been a longtime member of the Foundation’s Board of Directors. “I have seen firsthand from both sides of the table how important the relationship is between the Foundation and our Department, and I want to thank everyone who supports the Foundation.”
FDNY Foundation Chairman Matt DiLiberto added: “Continuing the momentum of our first two events, we have grown this year to our most successful climb yet. The 17,000 men and women that work for the FDNY—from the firefighters, EMTs and paramedics you see on the street to the thousands of people who work behind the scenes, both uniform and civilian—sacrifice a lot for the people of this city. They do it because they love the city. What we do at the Foundation is a small token of our thanks and appreciation for what they do every single day.”
To celebrate the achievements of FDNY members, the top 20 teams from the Department will receive a stair climber for their respective firehouse or EMS station.
FDNY Chief of Department John Esposito said: “Two of the main programs the FDNY Foundation supports are fire safety education for the public and it also reimburses and supports education for our members. The money we’re raising is going to do a lot of good and also help provide more education and training for our members.”
The FDNY Foundation congratulates all the participants and gives special thanks to the event’s sponsors, including:
- SL Green Realty Corp.
- Summit One Vanderbilt
- Way Fong LLC
- Tandym Group
- TRAUMAGEL
- WB Wood
- Fini Pizza
- NY Firefighters Heart & Lung Foundation
- Rapid Relief Team – RRT
Additionally, we would like to thank the FDNY Foundation Board and Associate Board members who sponsored teams, including:
- Matthew DiLiberto
- Tony Pasquariello
- John Santora
- Howard Koeppel
- Chris Carrera
- Amanda Rubin
- Cmr. Salvatore Cassano
- Bob Zito
- Michael Corbi
The FDNY Foundation would also like to send a special thank you to the Jesse Gerhard Memorial Foundation. The Foundation is named after FDNY Firefighter Jesse Gerhard, Ladder 134, who tragically lost his life in the line-of-duty in 2022. Firefighter Gerhard was a 7-year veteran of the department. The Jesse Gerhard Memorial Foundation generously sponsored three FDNY teams from Jesse’s firehouse “The Big House.”
Lastly, we would like to thank all our FDNY teams who participated:
- E151/L76
- E158
- E153/L77
- Team Downey
- E228
- E38/L51
- E243/L168/B42
- E324
- FDNY K-9
- L59
- E166/L86
- E264
- E328
- L134
- L147
- E263/L117
- L45
- FDNY Robotics
- E222
- L116
- EMS Station 32
- L164
- E318
- Burning Embers
- E240
- E301
- L119
To view more photos from the climb, click HERE.
To make a contribution to support the stair climb, click HERE.