Three-Time Nobel Peace Nominee Receives Honor for Voluntarily Starving to Save the World’s Starving

"After seeing 25 children starve to death within a few mere minutes, I instantly knew my faith in Christ obligated me to fight for those who can't fight for themselves." - Tony Hall

LANSDOWNE, Va., Jan. 26, 2010— In recognition of his remarkable political action to save the world's poor and hungry, Prison Fellowship and BreakPoint presented Ambassador Tony Hall the 2010 William Wilberforce Award on Jan. 17 at the National Conference Center in Lansdowne, Va. 

In 1983 Hall - then a U.S. Congressman from Ohio - co-founded the House Select Committee on Hunger.  Ten years later, the House of Representatives unexpectedly voted to eliminate the committee.  To protest the decision, Hall embarked on an indefinite, water-only fast. 

Twenty pounds and 22 days later, Hall's widely-publicized fast succeeded in convincing Congress they could no longer turn a blind eye from the starving and foodless people of countries such as Ethiopia, Haiti, Sudan and Somalia.  Due largely to Hall's efforts, Congress proceeded to pass legislation supporting food aid, child survival, basic education, primary health care, micro-enterprise and development assistance in the world's poorest countries.

"By working with the poor you're showing a sermon, not giving a sermon," said Hall.  "We can not be God's servants if we do not put first the needs of the most vulnerable among us."

Ambassador Hall is a three-time Nobel Peace Prize nominee, nominated for his global humanitarian and hunger-related efforts.  He is also the author of Changing the Face of Hunger: The Story of How Liberals, Conservatives, Republicans, Democrats, and People of Faith are Joining Forces in a New Movement to Help the Hungry, the Poor, and the Oppressed.

As a congressman, Hall chaired the House Select Committee on Hunger and the Democratic Caucus Task Force on Hunger.  He also founded and chaired the Congressional Hunger Center, a nongovernmental organization dedicated to fighting hunger by developing leaders.  Following 24 years of congressional service, Hall later served as the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations Agencies for the World Food Program (WFP), the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).

"We recognize that serving the least of these is a key to following God's commands of justice and mercy, and we applaud Hall for his monumental efforts," said Prison Fellowship and BreakPoint President Mark Earley.

Named in honor of William Wilberforce, the English statesman who waged a 40-year campaign against the slave trade in Britain, Prison Fellowship and BreakPoint present the William Wilberforce Award annually to a distinguished Christian leader who has confronted formidable societal problems and injustices.

MEDIA NOTE: To request an interview with Ambassador Hall contact Amy Anderson at (770) 813-0000 or (404) 545-1191.

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