Russell Bennett Faith and Courage Award Recipients

Every year, we honor the legacy of the late Rev Dr Russell Bennett, one of the founding members of the Tulsa Interfaith Alliance, by awarding a member of our community with the Russell Bennett Faith and Courage Award.  The Award recognizes those who have, like Rev Bennett, stood in the gap and built bridges between different communities of faith, worked to maintain the separation of church and state, and otherwise contributed to the objectives of the Tulsa Interfaith Alliance.

Here’s a list of our recipients:

2007 – Sheryl Siddiqui, Islamic Society of Tulsa

2008 – Rev. Dr. C. Welton Gaddy, President, Interfaith Alliance

2009 – Bill Sherman, Religion Editor for the Tulsa World

2010 – Barbara Santee, PhD, TIA Board member and advocate for women’s reproductive choice

2011 – Mana Tahaie, Director of Racial Justice for the YWCA of Tulsa

2012 – Rabbi Charles Sherman, Temple Israel

2013 – Rev Dr Don Pittman, Director, Interreligious Understanding Program at Phillips Theological Seminary

2014 – Toby Jenkins, Executive Director, Oklahomans for Equality

2015 – Rev Dr Marlin Lavanhar, Senior Minister, All Souls Unitarian Church, Tulsa

2016 – Rich Fisher, General Manager of Public Radio Tulsa and host of “Studio Tulsa”