WhyHunger held their annual Chapin Awards Gala on Tuesday, November 1, honoring actor Kevin Bacon, Stacy Huston from SixDegrees.org, Gov’t Mule frontman Warren Haynes and Bob Wolk with the Harry Chapin Humanitarian Award for their commitment to fighting hunger and its root causes.
The event raised over $460K to fight hunger and featured celebrities including Phil Lesh, Kyra Sedgwick and more.
WhyHunger is a leader in the movement to end hunger and advance the human right to nutritious food in the U.S. and around the world.
In 1975, GRAMMY-Award winning musician and activist Harry Chapin co-founded WhyHunger to protect the basic human right to nutritious food for all. He dedicated his life to ensuring equitable food access and used his music and activism to inspire others to tackle the root causes of hunger and poverty.
WhyHunger presents The Harry Chapin Humanitarian Award to shine a spotlight on artists and community leaders who have proven their commitment to building social justice and ending hunger worldwide.
Each of our honorees has demonstrated their strong support for WhyHunger, matched with an even stronger conviction to use their influence to make the world a better place. Warren, Kevin, Stacy and Bob have all been incredibly generous with their time and resources, using their voices and influence to drive real change in the food justice movement, while inspiring so many others to join them. WhyHunger is proud to call them friends and partners in the movement to end hunger and poverty, and we’re inspired by the dedication and impact that each honoree has made.
Noreen Springstead, executive director, WhyHunger
Warren Haynes engaged with WhyHunger in a variety of ways over the years, making generous contributions to the organization’s work, donating several auction items and experiences that raised critical funds to support its mission. From his annual Christmas Jam and the important work of the W&S Foundation to his extraordinary support for Habitat for Humanity and career-spanning humanitarian efforts, Warren has led the music industry as an activist and visionary in creating a brighter future for all.
Harry Chapin has long been an inspiration to me, and I’m humbled to receive this award in his memory. I’m fully committed to using my music and platform to fuel meaningful change in the world. Thank you to WhyHunger for this honor.
Warren Haynes
WhyHunger was chosen by Stacy Huston and SixDegrees.org as one of the beneficiaries and partner in creating PlayOn, a 2020 TV special that uplifted the power of music, people, and philanthropy to fuel social change amid one of the most challenging moments in memorable history. Powered by SixDegrees.org, PlayOn raised critical awareness about hunger and injustice at the height of the pandemic and provided over $3.2 million to support WhyHunger’s mission. SixDegrees.org, along with Kevin Bacon, has transformed the nation and world in meaningful ways by using the power of connection to support grassroots nonprofits and their social missions.
Stacy and I are honored to receive the Harry Chapin Humanitarian Award, in recognition of the work we’ve been doing at SixDegrees.org and our support for WhyHunger. We believe our shared compassion has the power to unite, motivate and bring about positive change. We know WhyHunger is aligned in that mission.
Kevin Bacon
Bob Wolk first became engaged with WhyHunger after attending Harry Chapin concerts and hearing Harry’s message about food insecurity. He later reconnected to WhyHunger by working at Hungerthon and hosting a number of Homemade Jams. Bob served on the WhyHunger Board of directors from 2015 – 2020, both on the executive committee and as Vice-chair. Bob is a deeply philanthropic person in his professional and personal life.
Over the past 20 years, WhyHunger has honored a cadre of artists in Harry Chapin’s memory, including Harry Belafonte, Pete Seeger, Barbra Streisand, Yoko Ono Lennon, Tom Morello, Jon Batiste, Jason Mraz, John Mellencamp, Jackson Browne, Judy Collins, Emmylou Harris, Darryl ‘DMC’ McDaniels, Michael McDonald, Peter, Paul & Mary, and Kenny Rogers.
This year’s annual gala will corresponded with the kick-off of Hungerthon—WhyHunger’s annual month-long campaign to tackle the root causes of hunger in America and ensure everyone’s basic human right to nutritious food. Both the gala and Hungerthon raise critical funds to support WhyHunger’s work in the U.S. and around the world. To learn more about the WhyHunger Chapin Awards gala and to purchase tickets, visit whyhunger.org/chapinawards.
