UCC member among 10 finalists for 2010 'CNN Hero of the Year'

[Worldwide Faith News <wfn@igc.org>]

UCC member among 10 finalists for 2010 'CNN Hero of the Year'

> Written by Jeff Woodard
> November 3, 2010
> []

Susan Burton is awash in bright light these days,
and the glare of CNN cameras is only a part of it.

"America is really getting it at this point,"
says Burton, a member of
<http://www.lincolnucc.org/>Lincoln Memorial
Congregational UCC in Los Angeles who is one of
10 finalists for the 2010 "CNN Hero of the Year" award.

Founder and executive director of

<http://www.anewwayoflife.org>A New Way of Life
Reentry Project, Burton has already been hailed
as a hero for overcoming long odds to inspire
women nationwide who have been incarcerated or
addicted to drugs or alcohol. The south-central
Los Angeles nonprofit provides shelter, safety
and support for women rebuilding their lives

"CNN is pretty much mainstream, you know," she
says of the cable news network. "I've known that
certain sectors of the community appreciate my
work because they've been so heavily impacted.
But CNN ? this is amazing. Among everything that
all of the other heroes are doing, they have
selected the work that I do as some of the most important. That is an 
honor ."

In its fourth year, "CNN Heroes" is a

multiplatform campaign focused on everyday people
changing the world. This year, more than 10,000
submissions from 100-plus countries were received.

Online voting to determine the top "hero"

concludes Nov. 18. Beginning at 8 p.m. EDT on
Thanksgiving (Nov. 25), CNN will broadcast a
segment featuring the profiles of the 10 nominees
before announcing voters' favorite. Nominees will
each receive $25,000, with the top vote-getter getting an additional 
$100,0 00.

Burton's path to heroism has often been

harrowing. The accidental death of her 5-year-old
son more than 30 years ago spiraled Burton into
the depths of an addiction that would result in
six drug-related prison terms in a 15-year period
throughout the 1980s and '90s.

"After my son's death, I fell off everywhere,"
says Burton, a six-year member at Lincoln
Memorial. Eventually, she saw total surrender as
her sole option. "God brought me back. I know
that this is a God shot, a God blessing ? working
out things that I'd never have vision or capability of pulling off 
myself."

In 1998, Burton founded A New Way of Life. To
date, it has served more than 400 women.

In the spirit of election season, Burton

encourages people to vote by visiting her web
site,
<<http://www.anewwayoflife.org>anewwayoflife.org>,
or <<http://www.cnnheroes.com>cnnheroes.com>.
"They can vote repeatedly. And it's perfectly legal," Burton adds 
with a la ugh.

Burton is already an award-winner this fall,
earning the 2010 Gleitsman Citizen Activist Award
on Oct. 12 for her efforts to eradicate social
injustice. The honor came from the Center for
Public Leadership at Harvard Kennedy School.

"I am a dreamer, but never in my dreams had I
thought I would be at Harvard one day," says
Burton, who received $125,000 as part of the
award given every other year to community leaders nominated by their 
peers.

Burton is also a longtime board member of the Los
Angeles Sober Living Network that provides
housing for thousands. In 2007, she was appointed
to California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's Little
Hoover Sentencing Reform Commission and Gender
Responsive Strategies Commission.

Gretchen L. Heidemann, A New Way of Life board
member who nominated Burton For the CNN award,
has worked with Burton for the past six years.
She praised Burton for taking time daily to speak
with women who live in the organization's housing.

"It reminds them that if Susan could do it, they can too," says 
Heidemann.

Members of the 2010 "Hero" panel of judges are:
boxing legend Muhammad Ali; labor leader Ela
Bhatt; industrialist Sir Richard Branson;
rapper/actor Chris "Ludacris" Bridges, Twitter
creator Jack Dorsey, actor Hill Harper, actress
Patricia Heaton; cellist Yo-Yo Ma; singer Ricky
Martin; speed-skater Apolo Anton Ohno; actress
Holly Robinson Peete; model Alek Wek; and actor Rainn Wilson.