Hand2Paw Wins GSK Impact Award and Aging Out Institute Award
December 13, 2022
Philadelphia, PA – Hand2Paw, a Philadelphia nonprofit that provides job and life skills training to youth through work with rescued animals, just won two major awards for its program.
Hand2Paw is one of 10 Philadelphia area nonprofits to be awarded a 2022 GSK Impact Award. The winners are selected by a panel of GSK and community leaders through a competitive process. The winning nonprofits needed to demonstrate that they improve community health through innovative ideas, measured outcomes, collaborative partnerships, accountability, and racial equity.
Hand2Paw has also been named one of seven winners of the 2022 Aging Out Institute (AOI) Awards for its innovative strategies supporting youth after they age out of foster care.
The Aging Out Institute (AOI) Awards Program celebrates the positive impact and influence of organizations that work with youth who age out of foster care. The awards program supports AOI’s mission to identify and share award winners’ best practices with foster care professionals throughout the world.
“Winning an AOI National Award is a significant accomplishment. The applications are judged by peers who work in the field of child welfare who assess each program based on specific judging criteria. The programs that won awards this year are doing amazing things to support youth aging out of foster care.”
–Lynn Tonini, Founder and Executive Director of Aging Out Institute
This year’s panel of judges included experienced practitioners in the field of foster care throughout the country.
Penny Ellison, Hand2Paw’s Executive Director said: “Hand2Paw is unbelievably proud to receive these extremely competitive recognitions, and we look forward to leveraging these awards to continue to improve the lives of Philadelphians—both two legged and four legged.”
Founded in 2010, Hand2Paw addresses opportunity gaps in employment and postsecondary success for young people, the majority of whom have experienced violence and significant trauma. Hand2Paw is the only nonprofit in Philadelphia whose mission is to teach youth practical work skills in a trauma-informed, animal welfare setting.
Find more details about Hand2Paw’s work at hand2paw.org, on Facebook @Hand2PawFB or on Instagram @hand2paw_philly.
