Los Angeles Priest Hailed as One of the Most Caring Americans

Father Boyle will be honored Friday, November 16, 2007 for his foundation Homeboy Industries, which provides employment opportunities for former gang members to deter gang violence.

(PRWEB) November 17, 2007 -- Los Angeles priest honored with National Caring Award. Award winners to be inducted Into "Hall of Fame for Caring Americans".

Senator Robert J. Dole, Chairman of the Caring Institute's Board of Trustees, and Val J. Halamandaris, Founder and Executive Director, named Father Gregory Boyle, founder and director of Jobs for a Future and Homeboy Industries, Los Angeles, CA, one of the 2007 National Caring Award adult winners. This honor is bestowed annually upon the most caring people in America.

"On behalf of our board of trustees, it is a great honor for us to pay tribute to Fr. Boyle and the other extraordinary people who have worked for the betterment of others. They are wonderful role models and personify caring," said Senator Dole.

On the mean streets of East Los Angeles, Father Boyle aids people most of us would consider criminals. Believing gang members "need hope not jail", he founded Jobs for a Future, a program that offers counseling and job referrals. When he couldn't find enough felon-friendly employers, Father Boyle opened a bakery, which was the start of Homeboy Industries. The company has expanded into five businesses which include silk screening, home maintenance, merchandise with its logo and a café that serves new Latina cuisine. The businesses allow these young people to earn a living and work with former gang rivals. Every month Fr. Boyle's programs help 1,000 kids, hailing from nearly 600 different gangs. For Father Boyle, whom the kids call "G-Dog", it's about inching "us closer to kinship as a city." There are signs his work is making a mark. In 1992, there were 1,000 gang-related homicides in LA County. Now the number is down to around 400.

Fr. Boyle and four other National Caring Award adult winners will be introduced at a ceremony at 10:30 a.m. on November 16, 2007 at the Frederick Douglass Museum & Hall of Fame for Caring Americans on Capitol Hill (located at 320 A Street, N.E. in Washington, D.C.). The official induction will take place at the Caring Awards ceremony to be held that same evening in Washington D.C.

The Caring Institute was founded by Val Halamandaris as a result of his first meeting with Mother Teresa, who suggested identifying exemplary individuals and holding them up as role models to be emulated by others. Its mission is to promote the values of caring, integrity and public service.

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