San Diego CA— Casa Cornelia Law Center, the Southern California leader in providing high quality, pro bono legal services to victims of human and civil rights violations, announces its 14th annual La Mancha Awards program, which will broadcast virtually on October 14 at 5:30 pm. Casa Cornelia will be honoring awardees in the following categories: Lucy Howell Humanitarian Award, Pro Bono Law Firm of the Year, Distinguished Pro Bono Attorney of the Year, Pro Bono Publico and Special Recognition awards. Price Philanthropies is the presenting sponsor of the 14th annual La Mancha Awards.
“It is our honor to celebrate our exceptional volunteers and sponsors who help further access to justice for vulnerable children, asylum seekers, and victims of crime from all over the world. It is truly inspiring to witness the passion and zeal that they have for serving our clients within our immigrant community, each of whom has survived hardship and fled violence or persecution,” said Casa Cornelia Executive Director, Carmen M. Chavez.
Casa Cornelia’s distinguished 2021 La Mancha awardees include:

• Lucy Howell Humanitarian Award: Carlos Yee, Casa del Migrante en Tijuana
• Pro Bono Law Firm of the Year Award: Morrison & Foerster LLP
• Distinguished Pro Bono Attorney of the Year: Anne Beaumont, Perkins Coie LLP

Carlos Yee is being recognized for his remarkable work championing the humanitarian mission of Casa del Migrante en Tijuana. His role is two-fold. First, as the crisis manager for vulnerable migrants who arrive at the Tijuana shelter with only the clothes on their back, he helps ensure they have access to food, shelter, and healthcare. Second, as the leader of the Training Center for Migrants (CESFOM), the training center for migrants, Yee oversees programs that develop long-term pathways for sustainable livelihoods through case management, training, education, and job placement. He exemplifies the essence of Casa Cornelia’s humanitarian mission of justice with compassion, one life at a time, through his committed work to help alleviate the suffering of others.
Morrison & Foerster LLP was selected among dozens of law firms for their remarkable pro bono service in 2020. They contributed more than 1,000 hours in services, responding to the legal needs of children, victims of domestic violence, and adult asylum seekers in San Diego County. “Morrison & Foerster and Casa Cornelia have been partners for many years. Casa Cornelia does a great job at partnering with the law firms that they work with. Any time we take on an immigration matter, we are working on something that is outside our wheelhouse so it’s vital that we have an organization that’s going to be experts in the law and have passion for the work that they’re doing,” said Brian M. Kramer, Partner at Morrison & Foerster, San Diego.
Anne Beaumont is a Senior Counsel at of Perkins Coie’s Environment, Energy & Resources practice. As a passionate volunteer attorney, Anne dedicated her pro bono skills with Casa Cornelia for more than ten years. In 2020, she worked tirelessly to represent a detained asylum seeker who was terrorized for being a member of the LGBTQ community in her country of origin. Beaumont’s most recent cases include clients from African and Central American nations.
The La Mancha Awards is named after the ever-present Don Quixote de la Mancha and his spirit and teachings and serves as a reminder to supporters and volunteers to dare to dream impossible dreams and “tilt the windmills” on behalf of those who cannot. All proceeds from this virtual ceremony will help fund the organization’s legal services programs for extremely vulnerable communities. Just last year, Casa Cornelia was able to respond to more than 1,320 children, women, and men from all over the world seeking legal assistance through the Asylum, Children and Victims of Crime programs. Support of each individual in these programs was possible because of the invaluable efforts of Casa Cornelia’s exceptional volunteers and supporters.
Sponsorships and donations for the La Mancha Awards are available at www.casacornelia.org or by calling Rosa Mitsumasu at (619) 231-7788, ext. 330.