LBJ Foundation honors Willie Nelson with 'LBJ Liberty and Justice for All Award'

LBJ Foundation honors Texas icon Willie Nelson with an endowed university initiative in his name benefitting rural America at a concert and award gala. Special guests included Eric Church, Sam Hunt, Elle King, and Lyle Lovett.

The LBJ Foundation created the LBJ Liberty & Justice for All Award in 2010 in the spirit of President Johnson’s commitment to public service and access and equality for all Americans. Willie Nelson is a deserving recipient. Throughout his career, Willie has remained passionately committed to using his musical talent to assist people affected by natural disasters, to address global food insecurity, and to support sustainable agriculture. Perhaps his best-known cause, Farm Aid, has raised over $70 million dollars to support family farms since its inception in 1985.

And while there have been many tributes to Nelson this year, including the announcement that he will be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, the sold-out celebration at the LBJ Presidential Library raised funds to create the Willie Nelson Endowment for Uplifting Rural Communities at the LBJ School of Public Affairs in honor of his longtime philanthropy and commitment to family farms and sustainable agriculture.