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Father Greg Boyle Of Homeboy Industries To Receive Presidential Medal Of Honor

A group of 5 people inside a coffee shop. To the far left, a medium dark skinned man wears a white shirt and baseball hat. In front, a medium to light skinned toned woman wears a black shirt. Behind her, a white man with a white shirt stands. To his right, a medium skin tone man wears a hair net, blue apron and white shirt. To the far right, a light skin tone woman wears a white shirt.
Father Greg Boyle will be one of 19 recipients receiving the Presidential Medal of Honor.
(
Courtesy Homeboy Industries
)

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Topline:

President Biden will present the Medal of Freedom on Friday to 19 Americans, the nation's highest civilian honor. Among those recipients is Father Greg Boyle, the founder of Homeboy Industries.

Homeboy Industries is the world's largest gang intervention and rehabilitation program founded almost 40 years ago in Boyle Heights. A statement from the White House notes that Boyle "has helped thousands of Angelenos turn their lives around."

Homeboy Industries released a statement soon after the announcement came this morning:

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Father Greg’s ministry through Homeboy Industries exemplifies the transformative power of compassion, forgiveness, and second chances. For nearly forty years, Father Greg has empowered hundreds of thousands of individuals to break free from the cycles of poverty, violence, and incarceration. His unwavering dedication to building bridges across divides and promoting understanding through compassion, kinship and tenderness underscores the importance of empathy and connection in creating a more harmonious society.

The Presidential Medal of Freedom ceremony will be hosted at the White House at 1:30 p.m. PT and can be viewed via livestream here.

Go deeper:
Biden is giving the Medal of Freedom to a who's who of Democrats (and Katie Ledecky)

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