Announcing the 2015 Canterbury Medal Dinner Honoring Mrs. Barbara Green

The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty
Kristina Arriaga, December 2014

It takes a special kind of courage to answer the call to step forward. This is especially true when it means putting your family, your livelihood, and your beliefs into the public spotlight. Yet, when the time came, this is exactly what the Green family of Hobby Lobby did.

Faced with an unjust government mandate, they sued the government, atgreat personal cost. After enduring over two years of litigation and a virulent and unjust public campaign against them, the Greens triumphed in Court in June. Because of their tenacious optimism and courage, their case set a great precedent for all freedom-loving Americans.

Throughout their fight, it was Barbara Green who was the public face of the family. She stepped forward on several occasions, including on one cold, snowymorning in Washington, D.C., when she made a statement on the front steps of the Supreme Court after Hobby Lobby’s oral argument.

In our many conversations, Barbara often told me she would much rather stay behind the scenes, as she always had before. After meeting Barbara, I must saythat her courage to step forward came as no surprise to me.

Barbara worked hard to make Hobby Lobby successful, working for the store for five years while caring for their young family before her husband David couldafford to quit his day job and run Hobby Lobby full time. But it is her faith that her husband and friends most admire. She shares her faith, leads her loved ones in prayer, and stands as a faithful witness to her multigenerational family.

She is a remarkable woman and I feel privileged to know her. This is why I am delighted to announce that the recipient of the Canterbury Medal, the Becket Fund’s highest honor, is Barbara Green.