Hobby Lobby’s Barbara Green receives religious liberty award

May 14, 2015, The Oklahoman

Barbara Green, matriarch of the Green family that founded Oklahoma City-based retailer Hobby Lobby,recently received the highest honor awarded by the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, a religious liberty law firm.

Green (pictured in an AP Photo) received the firm’s Canterbury Medal at the recent 20th anniversary Canterbury Medal Dinner for her defense of religious liberty during Hobby Lobby’s legal battle against the federal government over a controversial federal contraceptive mandate.

“I am humbled to be recognized on behalf of my family for our efforts,” Green said upon receiving the medal. “We thank the Becket Fund for its hard work that brought our long, two-year journey to a joyous Supreme Court victory. We are also grateful for the many who stood with us and prayed for us. I believe there is no greater cause to defend than one’s religious freedom.”

The Canterbury Medal recognizes courage in the defense of religious liberty and is given annually to a leading figure who champions a robust role for religion in society.

In a news release, the Becket Fund said Green received the award for her courage in standing up for her religious beliefs and her strength as the public face of the family throughout two years of litigation, which ultimately resulted in Hobby Lobby’s Supreme Court victory securing the religious liberty of closely held American family businesses.

“Barbara Green is a true example of the power of one person, of one family, in the cause of religious liberty,” said Bill Mumma, president of the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty. “Advocates of religious freedom can take heart from what the Green family has accomplished on our behalf.”