WE ARE FAMILY FOUNDATION®
TO HONOR PRESIDENT JIMMY CARTER
AT 2016 CELEBRATION GALA
On Friday,
April 29, 2016, the We
Are Family Foundation® (WAFF),
a not-for-profit organization founded by legendary
GRAMMY® Award
winning musician, Nile
Rodgers, will honor President
Jimmy Carter at
Manhattan Center’s Hammerstein Ballroom in New York
City.
President Jimmy Carter will
receive the distinguished Mattie
J.T. Stepanek Peacemaker Award which
honors a person who has made a significant
contribution towards promoting a peaceful society. Jimmy
Carter served
as the thirty-ninth President of the United States
from 1977 to 1981. In 1982 President
Carter became
University Distinguished Professor at Emory
University in Atlanta, Georgia, and founded The
Carter Center, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization
that actively addresses international and national
issues of public policy. He is the author of
twenty-eight books and numerous articles. In 2002,
he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Previous
honorees include, Dr. Maya Angelou, Desmond Tutu and
Paul Simon.
The Mattie J.T. Stepanek Peacemaker
Award was named in honor of the late 13-year old
best-selling poet and peacemaker, Mattie J.T.
Stepanek. “From the age of 7, Mattie viewed Jimmy
Carter as a role model. After the two began
interacting when Mattie was 10, President Carter
served as a mentor to Mattie as he pursued his own
peace endeavors. These two peacemakers collaborated
on a book, and grew a bond of mutual respect and
love. Today, their book, "Just Peace: A Message of
Hope" serves as the curriculum foundation for global
youth seeking to improve our world by tending to
basic human needs. I am beyond excited that Mattie's
friend, and mine, Jimmy Carter, will be accepting
the 2016 Mattie J.T. Stepanek Peacemaker award from
WAFF. This award is truly a celebration of Mattie's
legacy, which was indeed shaped by this amazing
humanitarian and peacemaker,” remarked Dr. Jeni
Stepanek, “Mattie’s Mom”.
Bono will
also be honored at the Gala and receive the We
Are Family Foundation Humanitarian
Award, which honors
a person in the public eye who has made tremendous
efforts and inroads into making the human condition
better throughout the world. The lead singer of the
iconic and award-winning band U2, Bono is
also a long-time activist in the fight against AIDS
and extreme poverty in Africa. He is the cofounder
of ONE, a global advocacy and campaigning
organization and (RED) which works with companies to
raise awareness and funds for the fight against
AIDS. Previous recipients
of the WAFF Humanitarian Award have included Sir
Elton John, Sting & Trudie Styler, Steven Van Zandt,
Nile Rodgers, Jackson Browne and Peter Gabriel.
The funds raised will support WAFF’s
mission and programs including WAFF’s signature
program, Three Dot Dash, which identifies, supports
and mentors Global Teen Leaders actively working on
programs that address basic human needs and
promoting a more peaceful world; and TEDxTeen, a
global educational platform for extraordinary
teenagers to share their ideas, stories and inspire
millions.
To purchase tickets, or to make a
contribution to the We Are Family Foundation, please
visit wearefamilyfoundation.orgwww..
Contributions are fully tax-deductible to the extent
allowed by law.
Arrivals and reception begin at
6:30pm on Friday,
April 29, 2016 followed
by the awards ceremony, dinner and live concert with
Nile Rodgers & CHIC and Bono beginning at 7:30pm at
the Manhattan Center’s Hammerstein Ballroom located
at 311 West 34th Street in New York City.
About We Are Family Foundation
We Are Family Foundation (WAFF) is a
non-profit organization dedicated to the vision of a
global family by creating and supporting programs
that promote cultural diversity while nurturing the
vision, talents, and ideas of young people who are
positively changing the world.
Through global initiatives like Three Dot Dash and
TEDxTeen, WAFF has mentored and empowered
extraordinary youth from more than 64 countries on
six continents by giving them platforms to share
their messages, tell their stories, inspire others,
amplify their work and foster respect and
understanding across cultures.
For more information and tickets,
visit wearefamilyfoundation.org