We are excited to announce the 12th Annual Benjamin E. Cooper Award honorees.

You can register online for the Award Reception on Monday, October 26, 2009 from 6-8pm at the Pilgrim Observation Gallery at Washington National Cathedral.

You can also purchase tickets by calling Ben at 202-364-1419 x20 or printing out this form and mailing it to Friendship Place.

Read more about the Ben Cooper Awards and previous awardees here.

The 2009 honorees:

Advocacy Award

Ann Michel ― for her passionate advocacy on behalf of D.C.’s homeless residents, particularly through the Washington Interfaith Network, and her inspiring leadership since the early 1990s of the Metropolitan House shelter ministry, a joint program of Metropolitan Memorial United Methodist Church and Friendship Place.

Community Outreach Award

George Siletti ― for his dedicated commitment to sharing his story in hopes of teaching others about homelessness and engaging them in service to help prevent it. George has educated and inspired thousands of people, many of them youths through the Help the Homeless Walkathon program.

Community Service Award

Pat Frohman ― for her half century of selfless action on behalf of social justice, including serving for many years on our board and with Friendship Place Partners, creating a housing program at Church of the Annunciation for formerly homeless individuals, volunteering with our partner shelters, and providing pro bono legal services to our homeless consumers and others in need.

Leadership Award

Pat Goeldner and Jane Stein ― for their outstanding service as co-presidents of our board from 2006 to 2009. Drawing on their innate collaborative talents, Pat and Jane worked seamlessly with board and staff to implement unprecedented organizational growth, including the tripling of the capacity of our permanent supportive housing programs. Under their guidance, Friendship Place assumed a new level of leadership in the community; the organization is now viewed throughout the District as a standard-setter in service delivery and advocacy by public officials, community leaders, homeless advocates, and other homeless service providers.

Pat has served on the Friendship Place board since 1994 representing Church of the Pilgrims; Jane since 2000 representing Washington Hebrew Congregation.