NYCREW celebrates the holidays early

New York Commercial Real Estate Women’s winter holiday gala and 10th anniversary celebration was held last night at the Upper East Side’s Columbus Townhouse — headquarters of the Columbus Citizens’ Foundation, a non-profit that advances Italian-American heritage and achievement.

Faith Hope Consolo, chairman of retail leasing and sales for Prudential Douglas Elliman, a director for NYCREW and star of the soon-to-premiere television show “What’s Cooking in Real Estate?” greeted roughly 125 guests with her signature blunt sense of humor. She joked that attendees were only there “so they could stay married,” hinting that the more time they spend away from their spouses, the better, drawing earnest chuckles from the almost uniformly female crowd.

The evening’s raffle included a skin care consultation with a Manhattan doctor and a basket of skin care products from high-end retailer Sisely Cosmetics. Unfortunately for the ladies, Consolo’s very male leasing partner of 22 years, Joe Aquino, walked away with the first prize. But if his fellow attendees resented his win, Consolo certainly did not, reminding the audience of her affection for Aquino more than once during the evening — “We’ve been together 22 years — longer than any marriage [of mine],” she said.

The evening featured cocktails, Italian food, speeches and, eventually, dancing. NYCREW President Karen Dome recalled the organization’s humble beginnings in the aftermath of Sept. 11 for the brokers, real estate attorneys, engineers and architects in attendance.

CREW award recipients included association members Consolo (the Avant-garde award), Karen Dome of Marcus & Millichap (Leadership) and Christine Chipurnoi of Wells Fargo (Pinnacle award).