The Marshall Legacy Institute (MLI) hosted our 22nd Anniversary Clearing the Path Gala on Wednesday, October 23rd, 2019, at the Fairmont Hotel in Washington, DC. Our annual gala celebrates progress in eliminating the humanitarian dangers and destabilizing effects of landmines, while highlighting the challenges that remain.
Leaders of business, industry, and government gathered to honor exceptional individuals who have made extraordinary efforts to help others in war-torn countries. The 22nd Anniversary Gala and Awards Dinner featured the impact of our programs in countries like Afghanistan, Angola, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bosnia Herzegovina, Colombia, Iraq, Iraqi Kurdistan, Lebanon, Nicaragua, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Vietnam, and Yemen.
Inspirational and powerful speeches were made by our honorees, to include: a life-saving Mine Detection Dog Team, MDD Sammy and her handler LCpl Nishantha Bandara from Sri Lanka; a resilient landmine survivor, Selma Gušo, from Bosnia Herzegovina; Justin (JP) Lane, a former Army Specialist who survived an IED blast while on a mission in Afghanistan; Angela Schmidt, who pioneered the CHAMPS program at North Mianus School in Connecticut; and Ross Perot Jr., recipient of our Corporate Philanthropy Award and whose company, Hillwood, sponsored 6 dogs in Iraqi Kurdistan. We were proud to have Lieutenant General (Ret.) Thomas Rhame, a longtime supporter of MLI, and many congressional and international leaders, present the evening’ awards. Dr. Ken Rutherford delivered a moving and motivational Keynote address, and Devin Dwyer of ABC News captivated the audience as the evening's Emcee.
Thank you to all of our Gala sponsors:
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