Eight Changemakers For Children Awarded "Nobel Prize(R) For Children"

Main Category: Pediatrics / Children's Health
Also Included In: Public Health
Article Date: 31 Oct 2008 - 7:00 PST

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The untold stories of eight changemakers whose remarkable on the ground work has significantly improved children's lives will be showcased on November 13 by World of Children , the only global recognition and funding non-profit that recognizes individuals who are changing the lives of children around the world.

These stalwart individuals each will be awarded with what has recently been hailed as the "Nobel Prize® for Children," an annual honor that includes a cash grant of up to $75,000 for the honoree's program. The 2008 Award winners will be honored at the 11th annual World of Children awards ceremony on Thursday, November 13th at UNICEF House in New York City.

"We are truly humbled and inspired by these brave and selfless individuals," said Harry Leibowitz, World of Children's founder and chairman. "These extraordinary World of Children honorees have notably improved the lives of children, and set an example for us all."

For more than a decade, World of Children has identified and vetted some of the most promising changemakers for children worldwide and provided funding for their efforts to improve children's lives. The organization's exhaustive research and vetting of individuals spearheading health and humanitarian initiatives across the global spectrum has been hailed by leading philanthropic organizations.

World of Children is led by co-founders Harry Leibowitz and Kay Isaacson-Leibowitz, retired senior executives from Procter & Gamble and Victoria's Secret, whose dream is to assure a Nobel Prize®-like award to honor social changemakers who improve the lives of children. Since 1998, World of Children has awarded more than $2 million in cash grants to 70 changemakers working in more than 35 countries.

The 2008 World of Children honorees are:

Humanitarian Award Honorees

- Rita Conceição, Bahia Street - http://www.bahiastreet.org
- Ricky Richard Anywar, Friends of Orphans - http://www.frouganda.org
- Dr. Edward Zigler, Parents as Teachers National Center - http://www.parentsasteachers.org

Health Award Honorees

• Dr. Jumana Odeh, Palestinian Happy Child Center
• Tibebe Maco, Hiwot HIV/AIDS Prevention, Care and Support Organization - http://www.hapcso.org
• Frank Brady, Medical Missions for Children - http://www.mmissions.org

Founder's Youth Award for Leadership

- Talia Leman, RandomKid - http://www.randomkid.org
- Darius Weems, Charley's Fund - http://www.charleysfund.com

About world of children

World of Children is the only global recognition and funding program for people specifically and exclusively serving the needs of children. Now an eleven-year old philanthropy dedicated to identifying and leveraging the efforts of those working on the ground to improve children's lives, World of Children has recognized some of the most promising changemakers for children worldwide and provided funding and visibility for their efforts.

Hailed as the "Nobel Prize© for Children," the World of Children Awards program searches the globe for everyday changemakers and provides funding and recognition to support their life-changing work for children. As such, World of Children acts like a social venture capitalist - employing a world-class research, review, vetting and selection process led by a committee of independent experts and professionals to find those individuals who are pioneering life-changing programs to benefit children. Then World of Children invests, through cash grants, in those enterprising individuals with a demonstrated track record of success, honors them at an annual awards ceremony in New York City and helps them leverage their World of Children awards to raise additional funds and generate visibility and strategic partnerships for their programs.

Leading philanthropies praise this organization's extensive worldwide research and vetting of extraordinary individuals who are spearheading health and humanitarian programs. World of Children has awarded more than $2 million in cash grants to 70 changemakers for children working in over 35 countries.

World of Children