"Agent of Hope" Honored With Humanitarian Award

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Sandy Springs, GA -- The city of Sandy Springs on Monday awarded its Humanitarian Award during its annual Martin Luther King Day Celebration.

The award, which recognizes outstanding individuals who have made significant contributions in the area of community service, was presented to Tillie O’Neal Kyles.

Like Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Tillie O’Neal Kyles has dedicated her life to lifting up the marginalized, teaching them about their intrinsic human worth and the power of forgiveness. She has made it her mission to equip economically vulnerable women with the tools to pull themselves out of dependency and into self-sufficiency and self-worth.

A burning passion to lift women out of generational cycles of poverty is what drove Tillie O’Neal Kyles to create Every Woman Works (EWW). Following a successful corporate career, she gained insight into many of the debilitating barriers leading to cycles of dependency, poverty and hopelessness as a volunteer at the Mary Hall Freedom House.

Since its inception in 2004, more than 1,500 women have graduated and more than 4,500 children have been positively impacted by Every Woman Works. Tillie O’Neal Kyles’ work has been recognized by many organizations.

She is a recipient of Phi Phi Omega Friends for Life Foundation’s 2015 Community Servant of the Heart Award, the Greater Fulton Chamber of Commerce 2015 Non-profit Leader Community Impact Award, the 2015 Woman of Impact Award from the Georgia Chapter of 100 Black Women, the 2014 Georgia Gem Award from the Women of Distinction and the 2013 Purpose Prize. Her reputation as a woman of high morals and strong faith is widely known.

Tillie teaches her students that they are not victims of their past struggles, and that “improbable does not mean impossible.” She is an “agent of hope who helps revive shattered dreams and release untapped potential among some of our community’s most vulnerable groups,” the city said.

The Humanitarian Award was created as a tribute to Dr. King, known as a strong advocate for community services. The community submits nominations, with a volunteer committee reviewing submissions and selecting the honoree. The King Celebration was held at Sandy Springs City Hall.

Past recipients include Betty and Phil Klein (2015), Hugo Mullins (2014), Flix Lora (2013) and Tamara Carrera (2012).

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Photo: from left, Fulton County Commissioner Bob Ellis, Pastor Henry Bush of Sharon Community Church, Fulton Commission Chair John Eaves, Tillie O’Neal Kyles, Mayor Rusty Paul, Rabbi Ellen Nemhauser with the Center for Israel Education and Oz Hill. Credit: city of Sandy Springs