Washington, D.C. (June 16, 2019) – Multiplying Good, the nation’s leading nonprofit focused on fueling personal growth and leadership through public service, will honor Lauren Cunningham as an outstanding public service achiever during the 2019 Jefferson Awards in Washington, D.C. on June 18, 2019.
One morning in 2014 nine-year-old Lauren Cunningham woke up with double vision. Hours later she was diagnosed with Leukemia, in a medically induced coma and fighting for her life. Lauren’s need for blood was her call to action. Since 2015, Team Lauren has held 11 blood drives and collected over 850 units of blood. Lauren has since collected over 450lbs of pop-tabs for the Ronald McDonald house. Lauren spends an average of 15 hours a month writing cards to children in the hospital and local persons fighting cancer, assembling care packages for caregivers and patients at Nationwide, collecting books for Ronald McDonald house, organizing blood drives and writing thank you notes to donors.
Lauren will be honored during the Multiplying Good 2019 D.C. Jefferson Awards for the impact she has made on her local community. The awards, now in its 47th year were co-created by Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Senator Robert Taft, Jr., and Sam Beard. This year’s event will be held at the Mayflower Hotel and is the nation’s largest convening of individuals committed to public service.
Following a rebrand in February, which put a greater emphasis on the organization’s overall mission and programming to inspire people of all ages to get involved in service, Multiplying Good continues to pay tribute to its roots by recognizing remarkable service with its twice-annual ceremonies in Washington, D.C. and New York.
“By providing a prestigious platform that recognizes outstanding, selfless acts of service, we motivate our award recipients to do more and we inspire others to take action in service to others, creating a ripple of good,” said Hillary Schafer, Multiplying Good CEO. “The youth, grassroots, corporations, and notable national award recipients who join us at the D.C. Jefferson Awards represent the very best of our country, people who have dedicated themselves to serving others. By bringing them together and elevating their work, we inspire positive impact in communities nationwide.”
During the awards, five individuals will be named winners of the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Award for Outstanding Public Service Benefitting the Local Community, which celebrates extraordinary and selfless volunteer work.
Grassroots honorees are nominated by the Jefferson Awards Foundation’s nationwide network of local media partners. Lauren was chosen by WLIO, The Lima News & The Way of Greater Lima.
Multiplying Good will honor Lauren Cunningham alongside the following national figures for their public service efforts and initiatives:
Denver Broncos linebacker Von Miller will be honored with the award for Outstanding Public Service in Professional Sports. Miller’s commitment to Denver youth through Von’s Vision provides low-income children with the eye care and corrective eyewear they need to be their best in the classroom and in life. His organization works with partners to donate their time, optometric and ophthalmological services, and frames and prescriptions to benefit thousands of children annually.
- On behalf of Patagonia, the company’s environmental advocate Avi Garbow will accept the award for Outstanding Public Service by a Corporation. As an American outdoor apparel company, Patagonia has long been on the leading edge of sustainability in the industry. The organization has donated more than $185 millions nonprofit environmental groups and conservation efforts since its founding in 1973. Patagonia has also invested more than $38 million in corporate social responsibility programs, such as the Common Threads Initiative, which promises the company will produce quality goods, repair them when needed, and recycle them free of charge in an effort to prolong product use and reduce the company’s carbon, waste, and water footprint.
Multiplying Good’s Media Partners program reaches more than 100 million Americans with stories of unsung heroes helping their communities and provides a platform to recognize them in their hometowns.
