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What began as a vision to IGNITE possibility for low-income Asian American youth has grown into an evening that turns belief into opportunity. We are humbled by the outpouring of support and can’t wait to gather on April 16 at Cipriani South Street to celebrate.
While tickets are no longer available, there are still meaningful ways to support Apex for Youth:
• Make a donation to help us reach more youth
• Sponsor or purchase tickets to our Gala After Party at NoFlex NYC and continue the celebration of possibility
Please reach out to events@apexforyouth.org with any questions or inquiries.
Every act of belief fuels a young person’s future. Thank you for being part of this movement.
Our 34th Inspiration Awards Gala at Cipriani South Street was a momentous celebration, raising a recording-breaking $3.7 million to support low-income Asian American youth! The evening celebrated our IGNITE theme with moving speeches from youth speaker Eric Ren and Executive Director Jiyoon Chung, and special recognitions of our 2026 honorees Lana Condor, presented by Avantika, and Michael Chung, presented by Eileen Gu. Their leadership and authenticity reflects the spark we hope to nurture in every young person we serve.
The funds raised, including a record-breaking $1.6 million during the paddle raise led by BD Wong, will directly support our growing mentoring and community programs, continuing our 34-year mission of breaking barriers and building a world without limits. Through these programs, we’re creating intergenerational change and empowering Asian American youth to unlock their full potential today and embrace a world of possibility tomorrow.
Together, we IGNITE.












From making her acting debut in a blockbuster Marvel feature film, to breaking the mold as the first Asian American leading lady in a YA romantic comedy, award winning actor and producer Lana Condor has quickly become one of the most in-demand talents in the entertainment industry today.
In 2026 Condor is poised for a major year in film, led by her upcoming Amazon MGM Studios thriller Pretty Lethal, debuting March 25 globally on Prime Video. The action-packed feature follows five ballerinas—barely on speaking terms—who are forced to weaponize years of brutal training when their bus breaks down and they seek shelter at a remote roadside inn run by a mysterious former ballet prodigy (Uma Thurman). As the situation turns deadly, rivalries become survival instinct, and grace and discipline become their greatest weapons. Condor stars alongside Thurman, Iris Apatow, Millicent Simmonds, Avantika, and Maddie Ziegler.
Michael Chung is Global Co-Head of Equities and a member of the Senior Management team at Millennium. Prior to this role, Michael served as Millennium’s Deputy Global Head of Equities. He is responsible for the daily oversight and management of the firm’s equity portfolio managers and teams globally, including fundamental equity, volatility, convertible bond arbitrage and event driven strategies. For these strategies, Michael is responsible for portfolio manager selection, capital allocation, evaluation of transactions and risk exceptions, and management of the global firmwide equity aggregated risk. He has nearly 25 years of experience in trading and risk management.
Prior to joining Millennium in 2016, Michael led investment teams across various distressed, credit and event driven strategies at Arrowgrass Capital Partners, where he was a Founding Partner, and at Deutsche Bank’s proprietary trading unit, Omnis. He started his career at Lehman Brothers as a research analyst for the firm’s Distressed Debt business.Michael received a BS in Industrial Engineering from Northwestern University, where he currently serves as a member of the Advisory Council for the McCormick School of Engineering.
Eileen Gu made history at the 2022 Winter Olympics, securing two golds and a silver medal, becoming the youngest ever freeski gold medalist at age 18. She followed that up with another record breaking performance at the 2026 Winter Olympics, where she took home one gold and two silver medals, becoming the most decorated Olympic Freeskier in history. She is the only action sports athlete to ever win three medals at one Olympics, a feat she has now accomplished twice. She is the first snowsport athlete to claim three medals at both the 2021 XGames and FIS World Championships and the inaugural female freeskier to execute a double cork 1440 and unnatural double cork 1620 in competition. Eileen also currently holds the win record for any freeski athlete, male or female, with 20 FIS World Cup victories.
Avantika next stars opposite Uma Thurman in the Amazon feature film PRETTY LETHAL for producer David Leitch and director Vicky Jewson, which will premiere at SXSW March 2026. Her Hulu series NOT SUITABLE FOR WORK, from executive producer Mindy Kaling, will premiere later this spring. She is best known for starring as “Karen” in the Paramount feature MEAN GIRLS, produced by Tina Fey and Lorne Michaels, the #1 movie at the U.S. box office for three consecutive weeks on its January 2024 release. In 2021, she was named to Variety’s Young Hollywood “Up Next” list after starring as “Rhea Kumar” in the Disney Channel Original Movie SPIN, which was their first original to star an Indian American lead. Avantika was born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area before moving to India as a child actor. She is now a proud New Yorker.
Thank you to our pro bono sponsors this year which include Gina Shin, GSJJ, and Shane Liao from East Side Stories. We are deeply grateful for their partnership.
Last year, with 600 guests in attendance, we collectively raised over $3.1 million — a testament to the power of Apex’s mission. As we head into our 34th Annual Inspiration Awards Gala, Apex remains committed to ensuring our youth can access the resources, mentorship, and opportunities they need to help them break down the barriers they face.
Asian American youth live in or near poverty in NYC.
of the city’s funding goes to Asian American programs, creating significant challenges due to lack of resources, despite making up 18% of the city’s population.
Asian American youth in NYC live in homes where no one over 14 speaks English proficiently or at all.
is the leading cause of death for Asian American young adults.
Apex for Youth addresses the ongoing pervasive needs of low-income Asian American Youth in New York City and across the country.
thanh thiếu niên được phục vụ từ tất cả 5 quận và 11 tiểu bang trên khắp cả nước
giờ tham gia của thanh thiếu niên
tình nguyện viên hỗ trợ thanh thiếu niên
Apex for Youth offers paid summer internships for high school and college students, combining hands-on work experience with career exploration and professional mentorship through the JT Tai & Co. Foundation Summer Internship.
Every donation to Apex for Youth helps us light new pathways of possibility for low-income Asian American youth. Your support fuels programs that spark confidence, unlock opportunity, and create a sense of belonging.
Sống lại những khoảnh khắc ấn tượng của Lễ trao giải thưởng truyền cảm hứng thường niên lần thứ 33 của Apex












From making her acting debut in a blockbuster Marvel feature film, to breaking the mold as the first Asian American leading lady in a YA romantic comedy, award winning actor and producer Lana Condor has quickly become one of the most in-demand talents in the entertainment industry today.
In 2026 Condor is poised for a major year in film, led by her upcoming Amazon MGM Studios thriller Pretty Lethal, debuting March 25 globally on Prime Video. The action-packed feature follows five ballerinas—barely on speaking terms—who are forced to weaponize years of brutal training when their bus breaks down and they seek shelter at a remote roadside inn run by a mysterious former ballet prodigy (Uma Thurman). As the situation turns deadly, rivalries become survival instinct, and grace and discipline become their greatest weapons. Condor stars alongside Thurman, Iris Apatow, Millicent Simmonds, Avantika, and Maddie Ziegler.
Later this year, she showcases her comedic range in Coyote vs. Acme (August 28, Warner Bros and Ketchup Entertainment), opposite Will Forte and John Cena, in the live-action/animated courtroom comedy following Wile E. Coyote’s lawsuit against the Acme Corporation. She will also headline the survival thriller Devil’s Mouth (Amazon MGM Studios) alongside Kathryn Newton, which follows college friends trapped in an underwater cave system with a bull shark.
Condor recently wrapped production on the romantic comedy Whodunnit, directed by Nora Kirkpatrick, where she stars as Tess Klein—a woman forced to rethink everything after a spectacularly derailed proposal and an unexpected rebound weekend—with Jack Whitehall, Robbie Amell, Lizze Broadway, Elizabeth Mitchell, and Randall Park.
Condor became a household name in 2018 with the release of Netflix’s To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before, which quickly became a global sensation. Based on Jenny Han’s New York Times best-selling novel, the film cemented its place in pop culture and helped redefine on-screen representation—showing that Asian American teens could finally see themselves as complex, romantic leads worthy of the full love story. Critics and outlets praised Condor’s star-making turn as Lara Jean Covey, with Vanity Fair writing, “Get ready to be charmed by Lana Condor,” and Vulture declaring, “Condor is a ready-made star,” among many others. Condor reprised her role in the hit sequels To All the Boys: P.S. I Still Love You (2020) and To All the Boys: Always and Forever (2021). She earned a Teen Choice Award nomination for Choice Drama Movie Actress in 2019 and received the HCA Award: Next Generation of Hollywood at the 2020 Hollywood Critics Association Awards.
Additional credits for Condor include starring opposite Chase Stokes in Valiant One; the romantic comedy Worth the Wait for Tubi alongside Andrew Koji and Ross Butler; and a guest-starring arc on the critically acclaimed, Emmy, Golden Globe, and Peabody Award winning hit series Abbott Elementary opposite Quinta Brunson. Her film and television work also includes HBO Max’s sci-fi romantic comedy Moonshot opposite Cole Sprouse, James Cameron’s Alita: Battle Angel (Twentieth Century Fox), Netflix’s limited comedy series Boo, Bitch (which she also executive produced), the Russo brothers’ action series Deadly Class (SYFY), and her feature film debut as Jubilee in X-Men: Apocalypse opposite Jennifer Lawrence and James McAvoy. In animation, she starred as the title character in DreamWorks/Universal’s Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken opposite Jane Fonda, Toni Collette, and Colman Domingo.
Originally from Can Tho, Vietnam, Condor was adopted by her parents at four months old (along with her brother, Arthur) and spent her early years in the Chicago area. As a child she lived in both Washington state and New York City, training in classical ballet in both locations. She took classes at multiple prestigious dance academies including The Joffrey School of Classical Ballet, The Gelsey Kirkland Academy of Classical Ballet, and The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. As a high school freshman living in New York, Condor took her first acting class and was hooked. During her sophomore year, Condor and her family moved to Los Angeles where she danced alongside apprentices at The Los Angeles Ballet and continued to develop her passion for acting by joining the theater department at Notre Dame Academy and studying at the Yale Summer Conservatory for Actors. While going out on a handful of auditions her senior year, Condor booked “X-Men: Apocalypse.” She has been working ever since.
On the digital front, Condor’s social media following skyrocketed in 2018 soaring to over 10 million dedicated fans internationally (and growing). She has used her newfound platform to generate awareness for causes near to her heart, including The Asia Foundation where she established a scholarship to send underprivileged girls and women to school in Vietnam.
Eileen Gu made history at the 2022 Winter Olympics, securing two golds and a silver medal, becoming the youngest ever freeski gold medalist at age 18. She followed that up with another record breaking performance at the 2026 Winter Olympics, where she took home one gold and two silver medals, becoming the most decorated Olympic Freeskier in history. She is the only action sports athlete to ever win three medals at one Olympics, a feat she has now accomplished twice. She is the first snowsport athlete to claim three medals at both the 2021 XGames and FIS World Championships and the inaugural female freeskier to execute a double cork 1440 and unnatural double cork 1620 in competition. Eileen also currently holds the win record for any freeski athlete, male or female, with 20 FIS World Cup victories.
In recognition of her exceptional accomplishments, Eileen was honored with the “Action Sportsperson of the Year” at the 2023 Laureus World Sports Award. In 2022, she made the TIME100 Most Influential People List and won two ESPYs: Best Breakthrough Athlete and Best Action Sports Athlete.
Eileen is not just a champion on the slopes but also a voice for young people, particularly girls. Her advocacy for female empowerment earned her the Vogue Aurora Award in 2019. Her role as a cultural conduit through sport was evident when she was named an ambassador for the 2022 Beijing Olympics, 2024 Gangwon Youth Olympics, 2024 Paris Olympics, and Salt Lake City 2030 Olympic Bid, as well as Laureus and Asia Society.
Eileen has made her mark on the fashion world since age 15, including walking the runway for Louis Vuitton, closing the Brunello Cucinelli 2025 show, and opening and closing the Bosideng 2024 show at Milan Fashion Week. She was one of the Founding Collective members of Victoria’s Secret, and has had brand ambassadorships with brands like Louis Vuitton, Tiffany, IWC, and Porsche. She has been featured on covers of Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, V Magazine, L’Officiel, Marie Claire and many more.
Eileen is an outstanding full-time student at Stanford University. Most recently, she was admitted to Stanford’s selective study abroad program at Oxford University, where she spent fall of 2024.
Eileen represents a unique intersection of sports, fashion, and education to empowered youth and families across the globe.
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Priority Deadline: May 31st
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