Ntarupt is proud to honor Gary Ahr with our inaugural community advocate award. When the Texas Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy asked me to organize an event in Dallas back in 2013, they said we must include Gary Ahr. That touchpoint has lead to an ongoing, 6 + year collaboration, and Ntarupt values the long time support from both Gary and his wife Sara.
Gary participated in all of the early coalition meetings where Ntarupt and its partners set our direction and decided on a name. He connected Ntarupt to the Dallas Foundation where it found its fiscal home/sponsorship, to the United Way for mentoring through their Social Innovation Accelerator, and to Dallas Social Venture Partners for pro bono consulting and additional funding. As a founding member of our board of directors, he encouraged our team to focus on making a major impact in whatever we do. Our signature public awareness campaign, Talk About It Dallas, began with Gary’s introduction to the work of the United Way in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, which had conducted a very successful teen pregnancy prevention campaign. Since launch last year of TAID, over 22,000 people have visited our website for information and our paid advertising has garnered 9,000,000 impressions through radio, youtube and social media channels.
A uniquely gifted activist and advocate, Gary will always use his platform and insistent voice to make a powerful statement that lowering teen pregnancy will keep families out of poverty. He is similarly passionate and committed to numerous social impact organizations across Dallas, and is a difference maker with his effective style of leadership and community collaboration.
There is not a public official or philanthropist who has met Gary that does not leave the conversation educated about how teen pregnancy impacts Dallas. If you are getting the idea that Gary is persistent, that is an understatement. He does all this with warmth, curiosity and openness. His instincts are strong, and his dogged determination has helped Ntarupt make significant progress because he is committed to making Dallas a great place for all young people to flourish. He has put considerable time, treasure and heart toward making this happen and we take the time to honor him today. Gary, congratulations and thank you for the work you do on our behalf and across the entire community to effect positive change.
