Press Release – (New York, NY) – Emmy Award-winning Eyewitness News and WABC-TV Reporter and News Anchor Bill Ritter has joined FPWA’s inaugural “Lift Up NYC” Campaign as the official Media Ambassador. In his role Mr. Ritter will lend his support to the campaign by participating in key events, and helping to distribute 25,000 gifts this holiday season to children across the five boroughs.
“I am thrilled to be part of Lift Up NYC”, said Mr. Ritter. “FPWA has a long, rich history of supporting families and communities across New York City, and this campaign truly embodies the New York and holiday spirit. It’s about New Yorkers coming together and rolling up their sleeves to help all families and communities rise.”
FPWA impacts the lives of 1.5 million low income individuals and families living in New York City by advocating for just policies and strengthening human services. Lift Up NYC is an inaugural campaign to harness NYC’s community spirit to lend a helping hand and give all New Yorkers the opportunity to rise. Lift Up NYC is an invitation for New Yorkers to create a city where children and youth are well educated, families are adequately housed and fed, workers are employed at a living wage, seniors have the means to live comfortably and stay engaged with their community, quality health care is accessible to all and neighborhoods are thriving.
Mr. Ritter was named co-anchor of Eyewitness News at 6 p.m. in February of 2001. He has been the co-anchor of the 11 p.m. news since September 1999 and is also a correspondent for the ABC News program “20/20.” He started at Eyewitness News in the summer of 1998 as a weekend anchor, the culmination of a robust career in broadcast and print journalism. He has reported on a wide variety of pressing topics for ABC including the Israel and Palestine conflict, drug use among teenaged Orthodox Jews in Brooklyn, and problems with the dramatic increase in the number of building scaffoldings in New York. Bill also covers fire safety and prevention for Eyewitness News and hosts the annual “Operation 7 Save A Life,” a special and campaign.
In addition to delivering 25,000 gifts in response to overwhelming requests from New York city’s youth in the hardest to reach communities during the holiday season, Lift Up NYC will raise funds for FPWA’s advocacy work. The campaign also encompasses opportunities for corporations to jump in and get involved. In mid-December, just in time for the holiday season, Lift Up will host the “Miracle on Broad Street,” a 3-day event during which all gifts will be packaged and delivered to children and families across the five boroughs.
Bill Ritter is co-anchor of Eyewitness News at 6 p.m.
About FPWA
FPWA is an anti-poverty, policy, and advocacy nonprofit with a membership network of nearly 200 human-service and faith-based organizations. Each year, through its network of member agencies, FPWA reaches close to 1.5 million New Yorkers of all ages, ethnicities, and denominations. FPWA strives to build a city of equal opportunity that reduces poverty, promotes upward mobility, and creates shared prosperity for all New Yorkers. Visit us at www.fpwa.org
