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GCRE Appoints New Board Member

Joseph Farkas, President and Founding Trustee of the Garden City Real Estate Professionals Foundation (GCRE) announced the appointment of Lauren Scarantino to the Board of Trustees of the 501 (C)3 charitable organization which was established in 2017 and is a leading philanthropic organization dedicated to raising funds for women and children health and wellness causes important to the residents of the Village of Garden City.  GCRE’s annual fund raiser, Cocktails for a Cause, has become a feature of the Garden City Fall social calendar and acts as a catalyst for creating awareness for the great charities that GCRE honors at the Gala each year and on an on-going basis through the fund-raising efforts of its members. 

Farkas stated that “Lauren is one of GCRE’s inaugural Foundation Members and has played an important role in the success of GCRE’s annual Gala, Cocktails for a Cause through her tireless efforts in coordinating the event year over year.  Lauren has also been an Executive Committee Member for the past 4-years and I am very pleased that in her new role as Trustee she will continue to serve as Co-Chairperson of GCRE’s Charitable Events Committee.  Her commitment to GCRE and helping the charities that we support meet their goals and objectives makes her a perfect addition to the Board of Trustees.”

Ms. Scarantino will join Frank Liantonio, Trustee, Vice President, and Co-Chair of the Charitable Events Committee, Gary Rufrano, Trustee and Treasurer, and Salvatore Ciaravino, Trustee, Secretary and Chairperson of the Membership Committee on the Board.   Tiffany Rufrano will lead the Executive Committee on a going forward basis.      

Professionally, Lauren is a leading attorney representing lenders and borrowers in the complex finance market of structured real estate debt where she is a Partner at the prestigious firm of Alston & Bird.   Lauren’s clients include institutional investors, life insurance companies, commercial banks, investment banks, debt funds, and opportunity funds in a variety of  single and multi-asset financings of commercial real estate lending transactions. These financings include permanent loans, bridge loans, mezzanine loans, mortgage loans for commercial mortgage-backed securitization (CBMS) programs, loan participations, loan assumptions, and sales and loan modifications, including loan pledges to warehouse facilities.  Lauren’s experience also includes loan syndication, acquisition and disposition of mortgage and mezzanine loans, A/B notes, participation interests and mortgage-backed securities, acquisition and disposition of commercial properties, formation of real estate joint ventures and partnerships, debt restructurings, loan modifications, and workouts.

Lauren also was recognized as a New York Metro “Rising Star” in Real Estate by Super Lawyers.

GCRE appoints new board member – Garden City News (gcnews.com)