The Prism Awards Recognize Joni and Friends for Outstanding Work
AGOURA HILLS, California, November 17, 2025 – A little boy smiling from ear-to-ear while he’s surrounded by a group of friends might seem like no big deal.
But for Chisomo, a 10-year-old boy with cerebral palsy in Zambia who has just received his first wheelchair after a decade of being carried on his mother’s back, it’s the gift of a lifetime.
The wheelchair was also a gift for Chisomo’s mother, Helen, who can now stand tall and easily travel to the local market to sell her produce, pushing Chisomo’s wheelchair instead of carrying him on her back. Once isolated by disability, their family now has access to resources and commerce, as well as connection with their community.
The international disability ministry Joni and Friends® is blessed to tell stories like Chisomo’s every day as we work to provide practical help and spiritual hope to people with disabilities worldwide. Content like this does more than promote our programs. It communicates messages of social good, like the importance of creating community for people with disabilities, the value in helping to bear another’s burden and the joy that can be found in forgetting about yourself while serving others.
We don’t create this content for accolades. We share it to change hearts.
That’s why we are all the more pleased to announce that Joni and Friends received a quartet of first place Prism Awards from the Los Angeles Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America for excellence in content across photography, video, radio and print.
A nonprofit focused on providing meaningful practical and spiritual help to people with disabilities, Joni and Friends was honored in the categories of public service announcements, direct response newsletters, photography and video. All submissions highlighted the dignity of people with disabilities, drew attention to the social challenges around disability, and connected audiences with actionable ways to make a difference at home and abroad.
The Prism Awards are the premier annual awards program of the Los Angeles chapter of the Public Relations Society of America, recognizing outstanding achievements in public relations and communications across Southern California. The awards honor strategic excellence, creativity and measurable results in campaigns, as well as tactics and individual contributions spanning corporate, nonprofit, government and agency sectors.
Joni and Friends won top honors in the following nonprofit categories:
- Photography: Picturing the Joy of Mobility: Chisomo’s Joni and Friends Chair
- Video: The Gift of Mobility and Hope: Joni and Friends Video
- PSAs: Promoting Dignity PSA Series
- Direct Response: Los Angeles Wildfires February 2025 Newsletter
The photography and video submissions both highlighted the story of Chisomo.
The PSA series, which was aired on KWAVE from San Diego to Santa Barbara, featured a series of messages from people with firsthand experiences with disability. They covered topics ranging from chronic pain and overcoming depression to disability awareness and acceptance.
The direct response award was recognition of the Joni and Friends February 2025 direct response newsletter, which was created under deadline pressure in response to the devastating Los Angeles wildfires that impacted our headquarters and prompted the home evacuation of our Founder and CEO Joni Eareckson Tada, who is a quadriplegic. The newsletter covered the impact natural disasters have on people with disabilities, as well as messages of hope and ways to both receive and provide immediate assistance for victims.
Shauna Amick, Joni and Friends Director of Public Relations, voiced a PSA for National Down Syndrome Awareness Month, and also oversaw the production of the February 2025 newsletter.
“Our entire ministry is both humbled and honored to receive these awards. Each one represents incredible teamwork, creativity, and dedication to our mission and the people we serve. Thank you, PRSA, for including Joni and Friends in such a distinguished group of recipients,” Shauna said.
The Los Angeles Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA-LA) is comprised of nearly 600 agency, in-house and independent public relations professionals representing LA-area corporations, academic institutions, government agencies and nonprofit organizations.
2025 was the first year Joni and Friends participated in the Prism Awards. To see the full list of finalists, visit PRSA-LA.
About Joni and Friends: For more than 40 years, Joni and Friends has provided the hope of the Gospel and practical care to people living with disability around the globe. Ministry programs include Joni’s House, Wheels for the World™, Retreats and Getaways, and disability ministry training. Joni and Friends also delivers daily inspirational media through radio programs and podcasts.
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