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Baltimore, November 15, 2002 -- Lutheran World Relief, a leading anti-hunger campaigner, a top-ranking general and lay leader, and a resistance leader and reconciler from Germany received The Luther Institute's 2002 Wittenberg Awards at a ceremony in Washington, D.C., November 9.
The individual honorees were Rev. Arthur Simon, founder of Bread for the World, General John Vessey, a lay leader in The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod and former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Dr. Joachim Gauck, a pastor who led protests against the government of the former East Germany and then served as federal commissioner in the unified Germany for the secret files of East Germany's State Security Service.
"Thank you for helping us to understand that service among those suffering from injustice must be accompanied with a strong voice and effective action for justice," said Rev. Kenneth Senft, presenting the award to LWR board chairperson, Elizabeth Duda, and president, Dr. Kathryn Wolford (see
LWR is the first organization to be honored in the 13-year history of the Wittenberg Awards, which are given for exemplary service to church and society.
LWR was also represented at the ceremony by former board chairperson, Rev. Dr. Robert Marshall, former LWR director, Dr. Norman Barth, and current board member, Kirk Betts. Marshall, Duda and another LWR board member, Bishop April Ulring Larson, are past recipients of the award from the Washington-based educational and research institute.
LWR works in international relief and development on behalf of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod.