WASHINGTON, DC — U.S. Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Suzanne P. Clark presented the Honorable Elizabeth Dole with the President’s Award for Lifetime Achievement during the 12th annual Lee Anderson Hiring Our Heroes Awards Gala, presented by USAA, on Nov. 9 at the historic Decatur House.
“Across a life of public service, Sen. Elizabeth Dole’s passion has been lending her voice to the voiceless and finding purpose in service to others. No one is more deserving of the Hiring Our Heroes President’s Award for Lifetime Achievement and on behalf of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, I’m honored to have the opportunity to celebrate her accomplishments,” Clark said.
Dole founded Caring for Military Families: The Elizabeth Dole Foundation in 2012 to raise awareness and support for the 5.5 million spouses, mothers, fathers and other loved ones caring for our nation’s wounded warriors. During the past decade, Hiring Our Heroes and the Elizabeth Dole Foundation have worked together to identify employment opportunities for caregivers and resources for employers to hire and retain caregivers.
“Too many caregivers still struggle to maintain a job, especially one that rises to the level of their qualifications,” Dole said. “We owe it to these hidden heroes to explore every possible way to keep the American workforce open to military caregivers – from flexible work schedules, to telework options to more generous paid leave policies.”
Besides the President’s Award, Hiring Our Heroes presented several other awards to individuals and organizations committed to serving and supporting military veterans and their families.
The Colonel Michael Endres Leadership Award for Individual Excellence in Veteran and Military Spouse Employment was presented to U.S. Marine Corps veteran Beau Higgins. Higgins is senior manager of military talent acquisition at Amazon.
Wells Fargo was recognized with the Lee Anderson Veteran and Military Spouse Employment Award for overall excellence in hiring and retaining veterans, transitioning service members, and military spouses.
Prudential Financial Vice President for Inclusion and Diversity Robert Barea presented Indeed with the Steve Robinson Post-9/11 Veteran Employment Award.
The Wounded Veteran and Caregiver Employment Award, presented by Comcast, was given to Booz Allen Hamilton for demonstrated leadership in addressing the unique employment challenges faced by wounded warriors and military caregivers and providing pathways to economic stability.
T-Mobile was given the Military Spouse Employment and Mentoring Award, presented by USAA and the Military Community Nonprofit Leadership Award, presented by NBCUniversal, was given to the D’Aniello Institute for Veterans and Military Families at Syracuse University.
Black-owned, woman-owned and veteran-owned activewear line ICONI was recognized as this year’s Capital One Small Business Award winner. ICONI stands for "I Can Overcome, Nothing's Impossible."
About Hiring Our Heroes
Hiring Our Heroes (HOH) is a 501(c)3 organization under the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation. The non-profit launched in March 2011 as a nationwide initiative to help veterans, transitioning service members, and military spouses find meaningful employment. Working with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s vast network of state and local chambers and other strategic partners from the public, private and nonprofit sectors, Hiring Our Heroes has helped hundreds of thousands of veterans and military spouses find meaningful employment through its comprehensive training and hiring events, fellowship programs, and online tools. HOH programs and services are available in all 50 states, Puerto Rico, the District of Columbia, and on military installations around the world. For more information on programming and initiatives: HiringOurHeroes.org; @HiringOurHeroes on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
About the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation is dedicated to strengthening America’s long-term competitiveness. We educate the public on the conditions necessary for business and communities to thrive, how business positively impacts communities, and emerging issues and creative solutions that will shape the future.
