Sir Elton John Will Receive Harvard School of Public Health AIDS Initiative Leadership Award

Award will be presented at the Elton John AIDS Foundation's An Enduring Vision benefit

NEW YORK, Sept. 24, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Elton John AIDS Foundation (EJAF) is pleased to announce that Founder Sir Elton John will receive the Harvard AIDS Initiative Leadership Award at the Foundation's annual An Enduring Vision benefit on October 15, 2013.

This award is presented to individuals who have displayed outstanding vision, leadership, and courage in the worldwide struggle against AIDS. Previous recipients have included Diana, Princess of Wales, tennis legend Arthur Ashe, AIDS activists Elizabeth Glaser, Mary Fisher, and Richard Gere, AIDS Memorial Quilt Founder Cleve Jones, philanthropists Bill Blass, Judith Peabody, Marguerite Littman, Maurice Templesman, and Deeda Blair, former United Nations Ambassador Richard Holbrooke, President Festus Mogae of Botswana, and President Olusegun Obasanjo of Nigeria.

"When I think of the extraordinary people who have received this honor before me, including my dear, dear friend Princess Diana, I admit to being quite humbled at the thought of being numbered among such august company," said Sir Elton John. "But I am also tremendously inspired by their courage, vision, generosity, dedication, and grace under fire. And I pledge to continue my work for as long as it takes to achieve an AIDS-free generation and ultimately a world without AIDS."

About EJAF

At the Elton John AIDS Foundation (EJAF) we believe that AIDS can be beaten. We act on that belief by raising funds for effective programs and policies, and also by speaking out with honesty and compassion about the realities of people's lives. Sir Elton John created EJAF over twenty years ago, first in the United States in 1992 and then in the United Kingdom in 1993. Through hard work and with the help of our network of kind, amazing, creative, and generous friends and supporters, the two foundations together have raised more than $300 million over the past two decades to combat stigma, prevent infections, provide treatment and services, and motivate governments to end AIDS.  The U.S. foundation focuses its efforts on programs in the United States, the Americas, and the Caribbean, while the U.K. foundation funds HIV-related work in Europe, Asia, and Africa. Join us in speaking out, taking action, and contributing to our efforts to achieve a world without AIDS.  For more information, please visit www.ejaf.org.

About the Harvard School of Public Health AIDS Initiative

The Harvard School of Public Health AIDS Initiative (HAI) is dedicated to research and education to end the AIDS epidemic in Africa and developing countries. For over two decades, HAI has been at the forefront of HIV/AIDS laboratory research, clinical trials, education and leadership.  For more information, please contact Todd Datz, [email protected], 617.432.8413.

SOURCE Elton John AIDS Foundation