Last month, Louisville’s own Brown-Forman helped to honor the city’s favorite son, Muhammad Ali, and promote his worldwide legacy of good works at the Sixth Annual Muhammad Ali Humanitarian Awards.
The yearly fundraising gala, held at the Omni Louisville Hotel, singles out and honors individuals from all over the world who are “driven to becoming change agents for the common good,” according to a statement from the Muhammad Ali Center. Also, the awards honor six young persons, age 30 or under, with an award for each of Muhammad Ali's Six Core Principles: Confidence, Conviction, Dedication, Giving, Respect and Spirituality. Brown-Forman sponsored and supported the event.
Brown-Forman was on hand for the star-studded event, along with a veritable panoply of celebrities, luminaries and leaders in humanitarian work. Hosts included Akbar Gbaja-Biamila, co-host of NBC's American Ninja Warrior and NFL Network's Fantasy Live; Lonnie Ali, Co-Founder of the Muhammad Ali Center, widow of Muhammad Ali, and advocate for children's rights and Parkinson's disease research; Juan Williams, journalist, author and political analyst; Martin Luther King III, the son of the late Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Mrs. Coretta Scott King; Heather French Henry, Miss America in 2000 and current Deputy Commissioner of the KY Department of Veterans Affairs; and Captain Niloofar Rahmani, the first female fixed-wing Air Force aviator in Afghanistan's history and the first female pilot in the Afghan military since the fall of the Taliban in 2001.
The evening’s entertainment brought the best of Hollywood and Louisville, like LA-based songwriter CJ Vanston; world-renowned cellist Michael Fitzpatrick; Louisville-based singer/songwriter Carly Johnson; country star IMAJ; LA-based guitarist/songwriter Tom Strahle; and Louisville’s own Kathleen Hoye.
Dr. Pearse Lyons, founder of Alltech, Inc., was honored, posthumously, with the Muhammad Ali Humanitarian Award for Lifetime Achievement. Dave Eggers, author, organizer and founder of 826 National, received the Muhammad Ali Humanitarian Award for Education. Amy Carlson, actor, activist and passionate advocate for women's rights, won the Muhammad Ali Humanitarian Award for Gender Equality. Finally, Sister Larraine Lauter, co-founder of Water with Blessings, was honored as the Muhammad Ali Kentucky Humanitarian.
The 2018 Muhammad Ali Six Core Principle Awards went to
● Sheldon Smith, age 29, of Chicago, for The Dovetail Project (Confidence Award)
● Kushagra Srivastava, age 23, of New Delhi, India, for Chakr Innovation (Conviction Award)
● Lisa Curtis, age 30, of California, for Kuli Kuli (Dedication Award)
● Alexandria Lafci, age 28, of the United States, for New Story (Giving Award)
● Alex Holmes, age 30, of the United Kingdom, for The Diana Award (Respect Award)
● Reyna Montoya, age 27, of Arizona, for Aliento (Spirituality Award)
We are proud to partner with Brown-Forman in their ongoing support of the Muhammad Ali Humanitarian Awards and we offer our thanks and congratulations to the recipients of this year’s awards. We look forward to the great work they will do in the future.