The Kip Tiernan Award recognizes individuals who have demonstrated exceptional achievement in philanthropic leadership.
May 28, 2024 10:32 AM EDT
SUDBURY, Mass. — Diane Bevin, a Sudbury resident and longtime supporter of the Greater Boston Food Bank, has received one of the nonprofit organization’s highest awards. Diane Bevin has served in a variety of roles at the food bank, from volunteering in the warehouse to organizing charity golf tournaments.
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The Greater Boston Food Bank (GBFB), New England’s largest hunger relief organization, has presented Sudbury resident Diane Bevan with the Kip Tiernan Award as part of its annual Partner Appreciation Awards.
The award, renamed this year in honor of GBFB founder Kip Tiernan, recognizes an individual or organization that has demonstrated exceptional leadership in philanthropy and humanitarian work and embodies GBFB’s mission through exceptional engagement, dedication and leadership in working with others to end hunger in their communities.
Since 2003, GBFB’s Partner Appreciation Awards have recognized individuals and organizations who work with the food bank to end hunger in Eastern Massachusetts. Recipients represent those who have partnered with GBFB to further GBFB’s mission through food donations, volunteer work, advocacy, charitable support and in-kind donations, helping to ensure that the one in three residents facing food insecurity in Eastern Massachusetts has access to nutritious meals.
Bevan, who served as Chair of GBFB’s Innovative Development Council (IDC), received the award in recognition of her unwavering leadership and support of GBFB since 1999. Bevan has made a lasting impact on GBFB in a variety of capacities, including leading the IDC and its members through the challenges of the pandemic, organizing fundraisers such as the Women’s Golf Tournament and GBFB’s Thank You Marathon, making phone calls to donors, volunteering at the warehouse and participating in a lifetime of philanthropy.
“To me, there is no greater goal than to ensure that no one goes hungry in Eastern Massachusetts. That’s it,” said Diane Bevan. “GBFB is a great organization.”
The Kip Tiernan Award, formerly known as the Founders Award, has been renamed in honor of GBFB founder Kip Tiernan. It commemorates 50 years since she began distributing food from the back of her station wagon in 1974, an act that later became the foundation of GBFB, a large-scale hunger relief organization. Paying tribute to Tiernan’s selfless life and advocacy, the award recognizes leaders who continue her legacy and carry out GBFB’s mission.
A nationally known advocate and pioneer, Tiernan felt called to a life of social justice and advocacy. In 1968, she left a comfortable life running an advertising agency to focus on housing and hunger relief advocacy throughout Greater Boston. She also founded Rosie’s Place, the nation’s first shelter to serve homeless women and their children.
Fifty years later, the face of hunger has changed dramatically, but the underlying issues remain. While the state has made great strides in public awareness, legislative solutions, and food distribution systems, one-third of Massachusetts adults still experience food insecurity, and that number is growing. Even middle-income households struggle to feed their families in an increasingly fragmented and inequitable socioeconomic landscape, as evidenced by the stark disparities in hunger based on county and identity found in GBFB’s annual food access survey. GBFB expects inequities to continue in the next edition of its annual survey, to be released later this spring.
In memory of Tiernan, GBFB is committed to ending hunger for all people facing food insecurity across Eastern Massachusetts, and is working with a variety of partners to advance the structural solutions needed to ease the burden on future generations.
“Diane Bevan truly embodies the legacy of our founder, always leading with generosity, altruism and a commitment to actionable hunger relief,” said GBFB CEO Catherine D’Amato. “Few people have been involved with GBFB for as long and in as many ways as Diane, and she has always been committed to our mission and to those in need. Fifty years after our humble beginnings, we are fortunate to have a leader of Diane’s caliber supporting our efforts and continuing Kip’s history of innovation and selflessness.”
Ten other awards were presented to GBFB’s network of food distribution partners, volunteers, public servants, donors and supporters who have contributed broadly to alleviating the food insecurity crisis and providing hunger relief. A complete list of winners can be found here.
