After dealing with the cutthroat pirates and swindlers of the fashion industry, former Ford Models CEO Katie Ford has emerged an unlikely but appropriate heroine in the fight against slavery and human trafficking. At her benefit last night for Free the Slaves, held in the Boom Boom Room at the Standard, Ford recounted why she kicked off her heels to help the cause in person. "I couldn't believe there are 27 million slaves on earth today. We were in Ghana, in fishing villages, where boys and girls worked on the boats and they're forced to call their captors ‘Mommy' and ‘Daddy.' You can't believe it when you're watching it," she said. PHOTO OF MICHAEL STIPE AND KATIE FORD, LEFT, COURTESY OF MARION CURTIS/STARTRACKS.
Featuring an auction and a musical number from The Box's Acantha Lang, the event brought out celebrities like Michael Stipe, Liev Schreiber, and Helena Christensen. Co-host Natane Bodreau had nothing but praise for Ford's efforts. "I've known Katie since I was 15 years old [as a model at Ford], so to do this with her, working with her every single day for months—I just thought—she's such an amazing woman." The live auction, led by auctioneer Kate Friedlander atop the bar in a beaded miniskirt and featuring items like Yankees tickets and a Steven Klein photograph, was memorable, to say the least. The most rousing applause was saved for statuesque model Carmen Dell'Orefice, who bumped up the bidding for Yankees tickets from $500 to $3,000 with one flick of her paddle.
Later, taking a break from the noise, Dell'Orefice revealed which lucky friend was going to the game. "Gay Talese is going to be the recipient of the tickets I bought in honor of his book—he's a Yankees fan. He doesn't know it yet, but he has to pay the price of supporting the cause."
Actor Liev Schreiber, who showed up without his better half, pledged his support when asked if he would go into the field like Ford. "Sure, but I've got small children right now—I don't know if Naomi [Watts] would let me take the kids to Ghana, but I'd love to." However, first is a family trip to Asia. "I'm going to see my kids in Thailand [for Halloween]. They're with their mom, and I'm bringing them a rocket man costume. It's probably going to be much too hot in Thailand."
While the night featured quite a bit of champage, some bartop entertainment and a blinding amount of flashbulbs, Ford had an unwavering focus in her goal for the night "Raise awareness and [have people] look at freetheslaves.net."
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