Diane Von Furstenberg Awards: And the Winner Is…
Katherine Chon wins the 'DVF' People's Voice award.
March 1, 2010— -- Katherine Chon, from the Washington, D.C.-based Polaris Project, won the "DVF" People's Voice Award today.
Chon, president and co-founder of the nonprofit organization that battles human trafficking, will receive the $50,000 prize March 13, 2010, the closing night of The Daily Beast's Women in the World Summit at the United Nations in New York City.
"Good Morning America" anchor Robin Roberts will present the award. The money will go towards supporting the work of Polaris Project.
Chon said the funds would most likely either help the victim service program or the national hotline.
"It is very exciting," Chon said.
Diane von Furstenberg, known for her distinctive prints and her signature wrap dresses, established the DVF Awards to honor outstanding women leaders.
The Diller-von Furstenberg Family Foundation has supported the awards, which will go to four women whose leadership and commitment have transformed the lives of women around the world.
In the first year of the People's Voice award more than 9,000 votes were counted.
Chon said von Furstenberg called her personally to tell her she had won.
"I was giving a presentation at a church in Concord, Mass., and right afterward I received a call from Diane from Paris to say that we won the award," Chon said, who added that she was jumping up and down at the news.
Von Furstenberg told "GMA" that she created the awards because her mission is to help women who give back.
"Women have always inspired me so much, my mother was an incredible inspiration. And the older I get, the more I am impressed by women. I have never met a woman who is not strong," von Furstenberg said last month.
Von Furstenberg has long been involved in Vital Voices Global Partnership, a nongovernmental organization that trains emerging women leaders and social entrepreneurs around the globe. Two of the recipients of the inaugural DVF Awards are from Vital Voices.
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