Ralph Lauren and Macy's support LGBTQ teens

Ralph Lauren and Macy's will be honored for their charity work helping gay and lesbian youth at the Emery Awards in New York.

Organised by Manhattan's Hetrick-Martin Institute (HMI), which runs the Harvey Milk High School and serves the needs of LGBTQ (Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender and Questioning) teens, Thursday will mark the 25th anniversary of the awards.

Charles Fagan, executive vice president and chief of staff to Ralph Lauren, will attend the gala at Cipriani Wall Street to receive an award for all the fashion house has done to assist the HMI.

Over the past year Ralph Lauren communications and graphics teams have developed a new logo, tag line and marketing materials for HMI, all of which will be unveiled at the Emery Awards 2011.

The fashion house's collaborations with the HMI go back a long way. In 2008/2009, students from HMI programs had the opportunity to work alongside Ralph Lauren designers to create four evening dresses and a tote bag, which was sold in certain Ralph Lauren stores and online.

Meanwhile, Macy's chief merchandising officer Jeff Gennette will accept an award on behalf of the US department store, which has supported HMI since 2005 with various grants and volunteer programs.

"We like to think that we are a retail organisation that serves the LGBTQ community very well," she is quoted as saying by WWD.

"The main reason we do that is because they are part of America, and we are America's department store."

Other corporate supporters of the HMI from the world of fashion include Levi Strauss & Co, BCBG Max Azria and Calvin Klein.

Ralph Lauren and Macy's are not the only companies to receive awards for their charity work this year. Back in June, designer Michael Kors received the amfAR (The Foundation for AIDS Research) Award of Courage at the charity's Inspiration Gala New York 2011.

Another fashion honoree this year was British supermodel Naomi Campbell, whose Fashion For Relief fundraisers have raised money for victims of natural disasters including the Haiti earthquake and the tsunami in Japan.

Naomi was rewarded for her efforts at the Angel Ball in Manhattan last month.