Inaugural Awards

The Andre Sobel River of Life Foundation presented the inaugural Andre Sobel Award for Courage in the Face of Adversity to Matthew J. Terry, a 17-year-old cancer survivor from Fullerton, California at the United Nations in New York on November 16, 2000.

The $5,000 annual award was presented in the name of the person after whom the foundation is named. Andre Sobel was the young son of Attorney Erwin Sobel and his wife Valerie, a designer, and brother to Simone. The award is in celebration of his life that ended prematurely after being diagnosed with a brain tumor when he was just 17 years old. After a yearlong battle, he succumbed to the illness in January 1995.

Shortly after his death the family established the Andre Sobel River of Life Foundation to honor him through the work of the foundation. Erwin Sobel died within a year of his son. His mother, Valerie, serves as the foundation president. The mission of the foundation is to enable single mothers of children with life-threatening illnesses to care for their child full time by relieving financial burdens when other resources are exhausted or unavailable.

The recipient will be a cancer survivor under the age of 21. The intent of the award is to assist a young person who has survived cancer to proceed with his or her life in a way that was not possible for Andre. The award may be used for whatever purpose the recipient desires.

A panel of judges selected Matthew Terry after submitting an essay describing his experience with the “isolation and solitude connected with having cancer.” He framed his discussion around the issue of tolerance and commented that .”tolerance means that you can make an effort to understand something that you have never experienced.”

In announcing the award, Valerie Sobel said, “Matthew Terry is a spectacular young man who won with his very eloquent essay, not just the contest, but our hearts as well.”

He is the creator of the web site, CureHodgkins.com, which is dedicated to providing valuable resources, information and stories of hope and survival to other cancer patients. He is also committed to educating the general public about cancer so that they will become more “tolerant of those who have the disease.”

The award was presented at a special United Nations luncheon to celebrate the International Day for Tolerance 2000. The Friends of the UN and the ASRL Foundation sponsored the luncheon with 150 representatives attending from the United Nations, the diplomatic community and various non-governmental organizations.

Please click here to read the award-winning essay by Matthew Terry.