In The News: 2025 Simeon Booker Award For Courage
Ohio Nonviolence Week: The Simeon Booker Award For Courage
On Tuesday, October 7th, 2025, Pastor Gary and Cindy received the Simeon Booker Award for Courage.
This award honors a local nominee and a national nominee for their work in promoting nonviolence as a part of effective community change for civil rights and equality. The award is named for the late Simeon Booker, a Youngstown native and Civil Rights reporter.
Pastor Gary and Cindy were honored as the local award winners, alongside the national winner, lifelong Civil Rights Activist JoAnn Bland.
Local WFMJ news station reported the following about the ceremony:
Local honorees Gary and Cindy Koerth were recognized for their ongoing work on Youngstown’s South Side. Through their nonprofit coffee shop, Glenwood Grounds, they’ve turned a once-vacant building into a welcoming hub that offers community meals, mentorship, and outreach to residents in need.
"Our call to the neighborhood, to the South Side — it was one of those things that God literally spoke to us and said, this is where I want you to be," Gary Koerth said. "It was all about serving the neighborhood so that we could build relationships and share the love of God with people."
He said the goal has always been to build unity and make lasting change, one person at a time.
"It starts one life at a time, and nobody is exempt from it," Gary Koerth added. "Everybody can make a difference with at least one person."
You can read the full article here.
This award honors a local nominee and a national nominee for their work in promoting nonviolence as a part of effective community change for civil rights and equality. The award is named for the late Simeon Booker, a Youngstown native and Civil Rights reporter.
Pastor Gary and Cindy were honored as the local award winners, alongside the national winner, lifelong Civil Rights Activist JoAnn Bland.
Local WFMJ news station reported the following about the ceremony:
Local honorees Gary and Cindy Koerth were recognized for their ongoing work on Youngstown’s South Side. Through their nonprofit coffee shop, Glenwood Grounds, they’ve turned a once-vacant building into a welcoming hub that offers community meals, mentorship, and outreach to residents in need.
"Our call to the neighborhood, to the South Side — it was one of those things that God literally spoke to us and said, this is where I want you to be," Gary Koerth said. "It was all about serving the neighborhood so that we could build relationships and share the love of God with people."
He said the goal has always been to build unity and make lasting change, one person at a time.
"It starts one life at a time, and nobody is exempt from it," Gary Koerth added. "Everybody can make a difference with at least one person."
You can read the full article here.
Posted in In The News