An ImPACTful Night at the 2024 Freedom Awards!

In The News

Jun 18

Written By PACT

The 2024 Freedom Awards have officially come to a close!

We are so grateful to everyone who attended our second Freedom Awards as PACT (formerly known as ECPAT-USA). The energy and excitement in the room was palpable, and the stories shared will be remembered for a lifetime. We are indebted to everyone who showed up to share in our vision, building a world in which no child is ever bought, sold, or used for sex.

Congratulations are in order (again!) for our wonderful 2024 Freedom Awards Honorees, honorable Bishop Donna Hubbard, Choice Hotels President & CEO Mr. Patrick Pacious, Saint Ignatius School, a co-educational, Catholic Jesuit middle school in the Bronx, and longtime friend and member of PACT, Jackie Shapiro.

We opened the night with a wonderful performance by R.Evolución Latina, an organization that empowers artists to Dare to Go Beyond. The group performed an excerpt from a new musical called BARBA, based on the life and work of Brazilian body percussionist Fernando Barba. The sounds of joyous snaps, claps, and songs echoed throughout the ballroom to start the night off!

Our Keynote Speaker, Jess Dannhauser, reminded us of the different ways we can support children and families, “whether they have been here for years, or a day.” Thank you, Jess, for your robust efforts to protect children and families, and for sharing your work and passion with us!

Did you know that honoree Bishop Donna Hubbard has worked with Airline Ambassadors International as a Certified Director of Human Trafficking Awareness and has facilitated trainings in North America, Hungary, Latvia, Thailand, the Philippines, Colombia, Iceland, Japan, Switzerland, Romania, Kenya, Korea, Qatar, and United Arab Emirates? And all of that in less than 10 years!

Carol Smolenski, former Executive Director of PACT, introduced honoree Jackie Shapiro, calling her a “fierce, clear-eyed, outspoken, hard-driving supporter of children’s rights,” and a good friend. Jackie Shapiro joined the Board of PACT (then ECPAT-USA) in 2010, while Carol was its director. In 2015, Jackie became the Chair– Carol noted that she had never seen anyone attack the bylaws of an organization like Jackie did. We recognize and honor Jackie’s hard work in building the organization PACT has become today!

Mr. Glen Gregorio, Director of Advancement and Operations, accepted the Freedom Award on behalf of St. Ignatius School. We got to hear from Y-ACT Program Manager, Valentina Amate Perez, on how committed the St. Ignatius School has been in carrying out the Y-ACT program in order to empower their students through ample guidance, support, education, and resources. We cannot overstate just how lucky we feel to be able to work with this wonderful school!

PACT has always been proud to partner with so many visionary organizations and leaders in the travel industry. Choice Hotels’ Patrick Pacious is no exception! Did you know that Choice Hotels has been a member of The Code since 2015, and a member of the PACT’s Partner in Protection program since 2021? Thank you Patrick, for your leadership and commitment to child protection and anti-trafficking efforts!

Throughout the night, we also celebrated PACT’s diverse programming and the various achievements we have had since last year’s Freedom Awards. For example, our multilingual educators have provided life-saving information about child safety to over 3,000 recently-arrived migrants through the support of the Thadhani Foundation, our Survivor’s Council continues to expand and create new opportunities for advocacy and engagement on Capitol Hill, and sublicensing of our free online training courses developed in partnership with the American Hotel & Lodging Association and Marriott International has increased from 4 to 60 industry partners– and the program is still growing!

We closed the night with a wonderful fundraising push by PACT Board Member Rev. Adrian Dannhauser with confetti cannons galore! We extend our heartfelt gratitude to everyone who donated, and to those of you who continue to donate– your dedication and support empower us to protect children from sexual exploitation and trafficking in the immediate future, and for years to come.

We clearly had a LOT to celebrate this year! None of these celebrations would be possible without the contributions from our amazing 2024 Freedom Awards Sponsors, the extraordinary planning and dedication from the PACT team, and of course– the support of our incredible community.

Together, let's continue to build a world in which no child is bought, sold, or used for sex.

Until next year!