Kellen Company Produces Star-Studded Matrix Awards Event

NEW YORK, NY (April 24, 2012) --- Tyra Banks, Maria Cuomo Cole, Glenn Close and Ann Curry were just a few of the celebrities who turned out for the  42nd annual Matrix Awards Luncheon  held yesterday at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City.  Presented by New York Women in Communications, Inc. (NYWICI), and managed by Kellen Company, this annual event honors the achievements of women in the communications industry. All told, 1,200 guests and dozens of A-list celebrities and dignitaries attended the sold-out luncheon.

Kellen Company, the premier international association management company, organized and managed the event. Maria Ungaro, vice president at Kellen Company and executive director of NYWICI, and her New York City staff, oversaw all logistics, including financial administration, registration, on-site management, direct mailings, journal production and VIP handling.

The event was emceed by NY1 morning news anchor Pat Kiernan. Winners included model and media entrepreneur Tyra Banks; Meredith Creative Content EVP Gayle Butler;  actress and producer Glenn Close; Maria Cuomo Cole, chair of HELP USA; NBC TODAY Show co-host Ann Curry; Laura Desmond, global CEO of Starcom MediaVest Group; Disney EVP and Chief Communications Officer Zenia Mucha; and author and Wall Street Journal columnist Peggy Noonan. The presenters of each honoree included such notables as NBC News special correspondent Meredith Vieira, journalist and author Katie Couric, and Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY).

Media relations for the star-studded event were managed by Kellen Communications.  Coverage ranged from red carpet interviews by entertainment television programs Extra! and Entertainment Tonight to published reports in The Wall Street Journal and MSNBC.com.

"It is so rewarding to work with the talented team of NYWICI volunteers for so many months and then be able to share the success of the day with them," said Ungaro. "However, you cannot burden volunteers too much; they have their own jobs to worry about. That is why I am so glad that NYWICI has chosen to partner with Kellen all of these years to ensure the success of the luncheon. From registration and catering to press and VIP handling, I could not be prouder of the Kellen staff who so flawlessly pulled off this event."