With Halloween looming, Alec Perkins and Trevor Traina had children on their minds during the cocktail party held in San Francisco by Gucci and GQ to benefit BUILD on Tuesday, October 28. While BUILD’s mission is to expose disadvantaged youth to entrepreneurs, Perkins noted that his family has a youth-based leadership model when it comes to fright night activities. “My son is going as Golden State Warrior Stephen [Steph] Curry, and my daughter is dressing up as a minion from Despicable Me,” said Perkins, “So I think I’m supposed to be Felonius Gru [the film’s villain, a character voiced by Steve Carell]. Our kids always have us dress up as an associated character depending on their costumes.” Traina, who noted that the evening’s auction proceeds benefited BUILD, admitted that his look for Halloween had yet to be determined. “I’m kinda stressing about it. My son today said, ‘Daddy, you don’t have a costume!’ Maybe I’ll wear my Gucci suit and go as an entrepreneur.”

Trick-or-treat particulars aside, Perkins who hosted the event along with Traina, Daniel Lurie, and Howard Mittman, said he had a chance to see the impact that programs like those devised through BUILD can make in the lives of youth who participate in them. “The success gap between kids with college degrees, earning a living wage verses those who don’t graduate from high school is just huge.” said Perkins “I taught high school history, economics, and journalism in Hunter’s Point for five years, so I saw firsthand what it means to have a great program like BUILD that really engages kids to give them better opportunities.”

By Jennifer McCullum

Pictured: Trevor Traina, Alec Perkins & Will Wick
Photo by: Drew Altizer