Caitlyn Jenner Presents at Point Foundation Gala
Caitlyn Jenner presented at the Point Foundation’s fourth annual Voices On Point dinner and concert Saturday at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza in Los Angeles. The Point Foundation aims to empower LGBTQ students, providing support, leadership training and mentoring to LGBTQ people.
This benefit event marked Jenner’s second time speaking in public since transitioning, noting that this audience was much different than the group at the ESPYs. After joking about the difficulty of walking in heels, Jenner expressed her happiness for introducing Caitlyn to the world. “Isn’t it just wonderful to live your life authentically?” Jenner asked.
Jenner presented awards to two former Point Foundation scholarship recipients, Rhys Ernst and Zach Zyskowski. Ernst is co-producer for Amazon’s “Transparent,” which has won five Emmy awards. Zyskowski is noted for his work as a producer on the ABC Family docuseries “Becoming Us.”
Both recipients expressed deep appreciation for the foundation. “The first day I came out I got thrown in front of a bus,” Zyskowski said. “It was very hard for me to find any sort of acceptance anywhere. When I got the scholarship it changed my life.”
The Point Foundation executive director, Jorge Valencia, thinks the media has done an “unmatched” job covering Jenner’s story. “Whenever young people seem themselves on the screen, on TV, in books, when they read about themselves and someone they can relate to, it gives them that confidence in who they are to succeed in school [and] to have that resilience to make it to the next level,” Valencia said. “I think anytime the media is able to portray these true stories of LGBTQ people it’s wonderful.”
Other attendees included Olympian Greg Louganis, who met Jenner during the Montreal opening ceremonies in 1976, and “Grey’s Anatomy” star Sara Ramirez.
The night included a live auction, featuring a table read and lunch with the cast of “Transparent” during the filming of season three as one of the available items. The foundation also announced a recent grant from the Elton John AIDS Foundation for $100,000.
The gala ended with a musical performance by Joey McIntyre of the boy band New Kids on the Block.
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