Introducing: No Guts, No Glory
A (virtual!) coffee table book for New Yorkers who love New York
Last year, The David Prize turned five! In that time, we invested over $5 million directly into the hands of New Yorkers, honored 25 extraordinary individuals as Prize winners, and heard from thousands more who shared their visions for a better, brighter city.
To mark the occasion, we wanted to do something special to share stories of New Yorkers who have won the Prize over the years.
Introducing No Guts, No Glory (a nod to the motto of the Prize’s namesake, David Walentas), a book including the personal journeys of five winners, one from each year since the Prize began.
David Prize winners represent the incredible genius of NYC, so the goal of No Guts, No Glory is to spotlight just that. To help bring the book and its subsequent digital archive to life, we teamed up with a group of extraordinary New York-based creatives, journalists Mattie Kahn, Neda Toloui-Semnani, and Trone Dowd; editor Katrin van Dam; designer Irina Koryagina; web developer Red de Leon; and photographer Jutharat 'Poupay' Pinyodoonyachet.
As we brought these stories together, David Walentas reflected on the origins of the Prize and his own journey in New York:
…[W]hen my son, Jed, told me that he wanted us to give away $1 million a year to people working to make positive improvements to their corners of New York, I knew it was a great idea.
Giving people a confidence shot—offering them no-strings-attached capital in support of their work—seemed like the perfect investment for us to make. How many great ideas falter without that? It could have happened to me.
That Jed chose to name this Prize after me was a tremendous honor.
New York City has given us so much. We are proud to help people who love it and who are working to make it better—the way we strive to do each day.
We’re excited to share No Guts, No Glory in its digital form. In it, you’ll meet:
Year 1 Winner Edafe Okporo: A Nigerian-born LGBTQ+ activist who (most recently!) is running for NYC Council to champion housing, healthcare, and public safety for vulnerable communities.
Year 2 Winner Fela Barclift: Founder of Little Sun People, an Afrocentric preschool in Bed-Stuy that has shaped New York's youngest minds for the past 40 years.
Year 3 Winner Dianna Rose: A lifelong Southeast Queens resident who has launched initiatives to boost healthy living and local entrepreneurship, including the neighborhood’s first farmers' market and commercial kitchen.
Year 4 Winner Christine DeMaria: A survivor of childhood human trafficking and recent law school graduate (!) providing education, career development, and legal aid for sex workers.
Year 5 Winner Greg Purnell: Founder of the Look Good, Feel Good Movement offering free haircuts to those in need and building a network of barbers to expand services across NYC.
These five winners—and all David Prize Winners—contribute to NYC in unique ways, but they share a relentless commitment to NYC, the grit to make the impossible happen, and a deep moral conviction that drives them. We can’t wait for you to read their stories.
