Inaugural Ruth W. Messinger Award to be Presented to Channsitha Mark, Coordinator of the Workers’ Information Center in Cambodia
- WHO: Ruth W. Messinger, Former President and Current Global Ambassador of American Jewish World Service
Channsitha Mark, Coordinator, Workers’ Information Center, Cambodia
- WHAT: Messinger of Hope: A Gala Honoring Ruth W. Messinger for her 18 years as AJWS’s president and celebrating an extraordinary leader and champion for justice around the world. This evening will feature the inaugural Ruth W. Messinger Award, which will be presented to Channsitha Mark, Coordinator of the Workers’ Information Center in Cambodia, as well as a performance by Grammy-nominated a cappella ensemble Sweet Honey in the Rock.
- WHEN: Tuesday, November 15, 2016
7:00 PM – Cocktail Reception
8:00 PM – Main program featuring a performance by Sweet Honey in the Rock
9:00 PM – Dessert Reception
- WHERE: Pier Sixty at Chelsea Piers, New York City
NEW YORK – Ruth W. Messinger will be honored at the “Messinger of Hope: A Gala Honoring Ruth W. Messinger” on November 15, 2016 at Pier Sixty at the Chelsea Piers. Ms. Messinger was President of American Jewish World Service (AJWS) from 1998 to July of 2016, and is currently the organization’s first-ever Global Ambassador. Ms. Messinger will be joined by Channsitha Mark, Coordinator of the Workers’ Information Center in Cambodia, who will receive the inaugural Ruth W. Messinger Award.
Ms. Messinger’s remarkable 18-year presidency at AJWS began after a 20-year career in public service in New York City as a member of the New York City Council and as the Borough President of Manhattan. She was also the first woman to run as a major party candidate for mayor of New York City. Under Ms. Messinger’s leadership, AJWS grew exponentially—granting more than $270 million to end poverty and promote human rights in the developing world and launching campaigns to end the genocide in Darfur, reform international food aid, stop violence against women and LGBT people, end land grabs and respond to natural disasters around the globe.
In her current role, Ms. Messinger continues her crucial work of engaging rabbis and interfaith leaders to speak out on behalf of oppressed and persecuted communities worldwide. A tireless advocate and social change visionary, Ms. Messinger sits on the State Department’s Religion and Foreign Policy Working Group, co-chairs the Sub-Working Group on Social Justice and is a member of the World Bank’s Moral Imperative working group on extreme poverty.
Channsitha Mark is the Coordinator for the Workers’ Information Center (WIC) in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. WIC empowers women garment workers by training them to be involved in worker-led efforts to increase social services and protection for women in the garment industry and society at large. WIC, an AJWS grantee, is also a member of the United Sisterhood Alliance, a coalition of social society organizations that are dedicated to addressing the needs of Cambodian people, particularly women, and to realizing social development, change, and justice. In recognition of her dedication to protecting the inherent dignity of every human being and for her commitment to build a better world, Ms. Mark will receive the inaugural Ruth W. Messinger Award.
For More Information
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