It Takes All of Us: Inside the 2026 Guardian Angels Luncheon

It was a room full of beautiful people, but what made it beautiful was who they showed up for.

On Friday, October 30, I had the honor of covering the 27th Annual Guardian Angels Luncheon and Fashion Show at The Ritz-Carlton Key Biscayne. Nearly 600 of South Florida’s civic, business, and philanthropic leaders filled the ballroom, all there for one reason: the kids at Holtz Children’s Hospital.

There was a Saks Fifth Avenue runway, a pop-up shop, a chance drawing, and a room full of gorgeous looks. But what stayed with me was how many different people, from doctors to donors to designers, came together around one mission. By the end of the afternoon, the luncheon had raised more than $750,000 for pediatric care at Holtz.

The story at the heart of it all

Last January, 14-year-old Danny Diaz-Leyva was playing video games when he suddenly developed severe hip pain. His parents, Daniel and Christina, thought it was a cramp. Then his leg turned bright purple and went cold to the touch.

Danny was rushed to the emergency room and diagnosed with deep vein thrombosis, a rare blood clot threatening his leg and his life. He was transferred to Holtz, where a team led by vascular interventional radiologist Dr. Maria del Pilar Bayona performed emergency surgery to restore blood flow and save his leg. Today, Danny is fully recovered.

His story is the reason everyone was in that room. One ordinary afternoon can change everything, and Holtz has to be ready for that moment every single day.

What it takes to be ready

I sat down with Flavia Llizo, CEO of Jackson Health Foundation, and asked her exactly that: what does it take for a hospital to be ready for a child like Danny?

“It takes the expertise, really, which is what we have at Holtz Children’s Hospital,” she told me. “Our academic partnership with the University of Miami and having those physicians readily available is the reason that we’re able to save people like Danny and make such an impact and a difference in his life.”

She also shared that many of the children Holtz treats are transferred in from outside South Florida because of the level of care the hospital provides. That’s why Holtz keeps growing. A new pediatric emergency room is set to open in 2027, and the hospital is looking to build a new neonatal intensive care unit.

Where the money goes

When I asked Flavia how the money raised in that room turns into the next family’s outcome, she was specific. Funds support Holtz’s programs and services, from Child Life specialists who read and play with kids during their stay, to new surgical equipment, to making hospital spaces feel more kid friendly.

But her answer to my last question is the one I keep coming back to. I asked what she’d want every guest to know about what their support made possible for Danny’s family.

“I think it’s the nurses, the doctors, the technicians, the clinicians,” she said. “Yes, you need the equipment, you need the surgeries, but you need the care, and people at Holtz care about every single one of their patients.”

A mission for every child

Holtz is part of Jackson Health System, Miami-Dade’s only public health system, which means it treats every child regardless of a family’s ability to pay. “It means that we can’t turn anyone away,” Flavia said, “and it puts us in a unique position to really be able to provide top-notch, world-class care for everyone in this community.”

That commitment is exactly why the Guardian Angels exist. Since 1997, this group of more than 250 members has raised over $44 million for pediatric care at Holtz. As Guardian Angels President Silvia Rios Fortun put it, “There are far too many children and families who go without the medical attention they need, simply because of their financial circumstances. That’s why the Guardian Angels exist.”

Fashion with a purpose

Saks Fifth Avenue brought “The Best of Saks” to the runway, and the room loved every look.

I also caught up with Vanessa Vasquez, one of Saks Dadeland’s top clients, who told me why events like this matter so much to her.

“It really brings the passion of fashion together, but it brings out the cause,” she said. “You get to have fun, but at the same time you get to be helpful.”

For Vanessa, the cause is personal. Her sister is a pediatric intensivist and her mom is a teacher. “When children are suffering or they’re going through certain diseases and certain times in their life, they’re just so resilient, and we learn so much from them,” she said. “Being able to be part of something like this organization and give back, I think it’s the only option.”

And her message to the community was simple: “Health is wealth, and it starts young. It starts with our children.”

Why we’re all together

What I’ll remember most about this luncheon is that no one in that room could have done this alone. It took surgeons and nurses, a foundation and its donors, the Guardian Angels, Saks, the sponsors, and a family brave enough to share their story. Every one of them played a part in making sure the next child who walks through Holtz’s doors gets the same chance Danny did.