The Love Akron Network 5th Annual Awards Breakfast

The Love Akron Network, a broad coalition of professional clergy and Christian leaders in both the public and private sectors, will be hosting their fifth annual awards event at the John S. Knight Center in downtown Akron. The breakfast will be held on Tuesday September 27, 2016 with doors opening at 6:30 AM; the program begins promptly at 7:00 AM and will last until 8:30 AM.

We are pleased to announce that local entrepreneur and former Major League Baseball player, Andre Thornton, will be the breakfast’s featured speaker, in addition to serving as the event’s honorary co-chair. Mr. Thornton is the President and CEO of ASW Global, LLC. He played professional baseball for twenty-one years and was an honored recipient of the Roberto Clemente Award in 1979. He spent ten seasons with the Cleveland Indians where he was a two-time All-Star and received the coveted Silver Slugger Award in 1984. Additionally, Thornton was inducted into the Ohio Baseball Hall of Fame and the Cleveland Sports Hall of Fame. He continues to speak nationally on Executive Leadership, Organizational Change, and Diversity and is co-author of the book, Triumph Born of Tragedy.

This event, which was attended by over 650 people last year, is meant to recognize the extraordinary leadership, deep faith, and community contributions of the late and beloved Honorable Judge Brenda Burnham Unruh. An award in her honor will be given to an individual who exemplifies outstanding Christian values and service to the community.

The event will also acknowledge the collaborative leadership of Reverend Dr. Ronald J. Fowler and Pastor Knute Larson, co-founders of The Love Akron Network, through the presentation of the Fowler- Larson Allies Award. This award will be presented to two individuals who have jointly demonstrated an intentional effort to build bridges between individuals or institutions of diverse color, culture or congregational tradition.

The Love Akron Network is currently seeking nominations for both awards. Detailed criteria and nomination forms are available at the event’s website: thebreakfast.loveakron.org. Nominations will be accepted until 5:00pm on Saturday May 31, 2015.