Frannie Hall Kieschnick honored with GAIA Global Citizen Award

Last Sunday (October 7) at a GAIA Global Health event in Menlo Park, the Rev. Frannie Hall Kieschnick received the organization’s Global Citizen Award. Frannie is familiar to many local residents having been on the staff at both Trinity Church and St. Bede’s.

In remarks, GAIA board member and former Global Citizen Awardee Marty Arscott said:

“[Now] following her passion to stop violence against women through education, enterprise and empowerment, Frannie doesn’t just talk about social justice but rather places herself on the front lines around the globe. So many people in desperate circumstances experience her compassion and are transformed by the seeds of hope she plants. Her work spans organizations such as Thistle Farms where she is Global Ambassador, the City of Joy in the Congo, Catherine’s Center in Menlo Park and, of course, GAIA.

“To paraphrase Marianne Williamson’s words, Frannie is convinced that in every country there is justice to be done. In every community there are wounds to be healed. In every heart, there is the power of love to transform the world.

“These beliefs are the foundation for her commitment over decades to GAIA Global Health whose co-founder, Bill Rankin, she knew from her days at All Saints Pasadena. It was actually at a gathering at her home where I heard Bill speak and thus began our family’s engagement with GAIA. Bill spoke of how women were disproportionately impacted by the HIV crisis, how women disproportionately bore the burden of caring for the afflicted members of their families, and how women needed to be the focus of interventions to turn the tide.

“Frannie has similarly inspired many, many others to support GAIA’s work over the years in one of THE poorest corners of the world with egregiously limited access to health care. She has been a force for GAIA and the hundreds of thousands of people impacted by GAIA’s work each year.”

Top photo show Frannie with GAIA Executive Director Todd Schafer (courtesy of GAIA); second photo of Frannie with husband Michael Kieschnick and daughter Hannah Kieschnick (by Robb Most (c) 2023)