2020 Howard County Human Rights Award Recipients Named

HOWARD COUNTY, MD — The Howard County Human Rights Commission has announced that Jumel Howard, Erika Strauss Chavarria and The Horizon Foundation are the recipients of the 2020 Human Rights Awards during a virtual awards ceremony Oct. 22. Charmaine Y. Yuan is the recipient of the Human Rights Commission’s newly formed Human Rights Student Award.

"These awards celebrate outstanding Howard County residents and organizations that work tirelessly to serve our community through their humanitarian efforts," said Howard County Executive Calvin Ball in a statement. "Each has gone above and beyond to garner this recognition from the Howard County Human Rights Commission. In recognizing these incredible award recipients and everything they do to serve others – I can confidently say this is just the beginning of their legacy."

Presented annually, the Human Rights Commission Award honors individuals and community organizations for contributions to human and civil rights in Howard County. The purpose of the award is to recognize exemplary citizenship, dedicated leadership and outstanding achievement in eliminating or eradicating discrimination, while advancing human rights for all residents of Howard County. Award recipients are selected by the commission based on nominations submitted by the community.

Jumel Howard founded the first Howard County Pride Festival and serves as a role model for Howard County youth. Howard has become a well known and respected conduit in the promotion of community dialogue and reinforcement of the county’s goals of diversity and inclusiveness.

In March 2020, Erika Strauss Chavarria started the Facebook group “Columbia Community Care” in response to the growing and dire needs of community members struggling in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. Since then, Erika has volunteered at schools throughout the county, providing food to more than 100 families a day. She volunteers to distribute food on weekends when Howard County Public School System Grab-and-Go meals are not available.

Committed to improving the health of Howard County’s residents through innovative initiatives, collaborative partnerships, strategic grant-making and thoughtful advocacy, the Horizon Foundation is this year’s organizational recipient of the Human Rights Award. Through its programs, the Horizon Foundation strives to promote social justice, equity and dignity for all, and consistently aims to help everyone in its community, especially those facing the greatest challenges.

This year, the commission launched its inaugural Human Rights Student Award contest, which specifically recognizes individuals 26 and under for their contributions to human and civil rights in Howard County. Charmaine Y. Yuan is this year’s recipient of the Human Rights Student Award. A senior at the University of Maryland at College Park, Yuan spent her winter, spring and summer breaks last year volunteering at the Howard County Food Bank, where she organized shelves, stocked refrigerators and washed bins.