Giving Tuesday Spotlight: The Vision and Generosity of Judy Miremont-Vitanza
During this Giving Tuesday campaign, Thrive for Life Prison Project is proud to lift up the extraordinary generosity and leadership of Judy Miremont-Vitanza, one of our most committed and visionary partners.
Judy has long been a champion of transformative missions—having made a gift of over $1 million to St. Patrick’s Cathedral, she continues to embody a philanthropic spirit that strengthens both the Church and the broader community. Her commitment to Thrive for Life Prison Project, a national Catholic prison ministry, has been equally profound. Judy has personally contributed over $100,000 in direct financial support to our mission. Yet her impact extends far beyond her own giving.
Through her remarkable capacity to bring people together, Judy has mobilized a powerful network of family, friends, and colleagues, inspiring nearly $1 million in collective support for Thrive for Life. Her leadership, vision, and deep belief in the dignity of each human life have multiplied her generosity exponentially, helping to transform lives both behind and beyond the prison walls.
This extraordinary impact has been further strengthened through her collaboration and friendship with Hunt Slonem, the acclaimed, world-renowned neo-impressionist artist, whose magnificent ability to bring beauty and joy into the world has become part of the fabric of Thrive for Life’s mission. Through their shared generosity and creativity—and with profound love and respect for His Eminence Timothy Cardinal Dolan—Judy and Hunt have helped advance Thrive for Life’s growth as a national organization with Houses of Studies throughout the country for highly committed, motivated individuals who want to continue their education post-release.
Through this generosity, Hunt Slonem has helped make these houses beautiful, uplifting and transforming them with his distinctive artwork, furniture, and artistic vision. His contributions have added beauty, dignity, and warmth to the spaces where our scholars live, study, and rebuild their lives. These homes, generously provided to the Thrive for Life Prison Project, now shine even more brightly because of Hunt’s artistry and the beauty he brings to so many places around the world.
Because of Judy and Hunt’s collaboration—and their deep love for His Eminence Cardinal Dolan—together they have also galvanized the funds necessary to launch the new Cardinal’s Café at Thrive for Life’s Abraham House in the South Bronx. This café will be far more than a place for coffee: it will serve as a job workforce training center and life-skills development hub for justice-impacted individuals post-release. It will prepare men to become “men for others,” equipping them with the skills, confidence, and vocational readiness needed to serve the local neighborhood in the South Bronx through meaningful employment, hospitality, and trade-school pathways.
The Cardinal’s Café will stand as a living testament to the generosity, leadership, and vision of Judy and Hunt—a sacred space where justice-impacted people will encounter dignity, opportunity, and hope.
Today, on this Giving Tuesday, Thrive for Life Prison Project would like to give back—and what we give back is a tremendous and heartfelt expression of gratitude to Judy Miremont-Vitanza and Hunt Slonem for their transformative work, their generosity, their commitment, and their belief in our mission and national ambitions. Through their partnership, they continue to transform lives both behind and beyond the prison walls.
