2012 Women of Concern Awards Luncheon Honors Two Extraordinary Women

Concern Worldwide hosts its annual Women of Concern Awards Luncheon on Friday, February 24, 2012 from 11:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the Fairmont Hotel Millennium Park, 200 North Columbus Drive, Chicago, IL. The event, now in its 14th year, honors women who have demonstrated the qualities of justice, generosity and compassion in their work and daily lives. The 2012 Women of Concern Awards will be presented to Diane Geraghty, Professor at Loyola University Chicago School of Law, and Jacqueline Novogratz, Founder and CEO of Acumen Fund, and will be hosted by WLS TV’s Kathy Brock. The funds raised by the luncheon will support Concern’s education programs in 13 developing countries, focusing on increasing access to and quality of basic primary education. Annually, more than 1000 guests attend the event. The co-chairs of the event are Carol Deely and Susan Flynn, who are both residents of Lincoln Park.

Women of Concern Leadership Award:
Diane Geraghty, Professor, Loyola University Chicago School of Law

A member of the Loyola faculty since 1977, Professor Geraghty developed and directs Loyola's nationally recognized Civitas Child Law Center, and is the A. Kathleen Beazley Chair. Her teaching, scholarship, and service focus on all aspects of the law as it affects children. She has served as a consultant to UNICEF in Africa and Asia and is the recipient of many awards for her contributions to children's law, including the American Bar Association Livingston Hall Award, the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges Award, and the Women of Concern Leadership Award. From 2004 - 2005 she served as Interim Dean of the School of Law. In 2009, she received Loyola University Chicago's Faculty Member of the Year award.

Women of Concern Humanitarian Award:
Jacqueline Novogratz, Founder and CEO of Acumen Fund
Jacqueline Novogratz is the founder and CEO of Acumen Fund, a non-profit global venture fund that uses entrepreneurial approaches to solve the problems of global poverty. Acumen Fund invests patient capital to identify, strengthen and scale business models that effectively serve the poor and champions this approach as an effective complement to traditional aid. Acumen Fund currently manages more than $60 million in investments in South Asia and East Africa, all focused on delivering affordable healthcare, water, housing and energy to the poor in Pakistan, India and Kenya. She is a frequent speaker at the Clinton Global Initiative and TED. Her best-selling memoir The Blue Sweater: Bridging the Gap Between Rich and Poor in an Interconnected World chronicles her quest to understand poverty and challenges readers to grant dignity to the poor and to rethink their engagement with the world.

Concern Worldwide is a non-governmental, international humanitarian organization dedicated to the reduction of suffering and working towards the ultimate elimination of extreme poverty in the world’s poorest countries. With a team of more than 3,600 highly skilled and committed workers, Concern has an on-the-ground presence in 25 of the world’s poorest countries. Diverse funding from private and government donors give Concern the independence and flexibility to respond rapidly to a crisis and where needed most. Concern implements programs in the areas of livelihoods, health, HIV and AIDS, and education. Concern is committed to reaching the poorest and most vulnerable, and to working in partnership with local organizations and people in their own communities to develop practical and lasting solutions to extreme poverty. www.concernusa.org

Concern Worldwide’s annual Women of Concern Awards Luncheon will be held on Friday, February 24, 2012 from 11:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the Fairmont Chicago Millennium Park, 200 North Columbus Drive, Chicago, IL 60601. For tickets, phone (312) 431- 8400 or visit www.concernusa.org.

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