Nonprofit Westchester to Honor Executive Director of Hope’s Door at the Keep Westchester Thriving Awards
CarlLa Horton Recognized as the 2025 Distinguished Service Honoree
Hawthorne, NY, July 17, 2025 --(PR.com)-- Hope’s Door, a nonprofit dedicated to ending domestic violence, is pleased to announce that Executive Director CarlLa Horton has been selected by Nonprofit Westchester (NPW) to be the recipient of their Distinguished Service Award. Horton will be honored on December 3rd at NPW’s annual Keep Westchester Thriving Awards ceremony which honors the remarkable individuals and organizations that shape Westchester County’s future.
CarlLa Horton is being recognized for her decades-long service within the community, her extraordinary ingenuity, her expertise and resolve in addressing the challenges in Westchester County and her creation of opportunities for all members of the community.
Born in Chicago and raised in a family deeply affected by domestic violence, poverty, and sexual abuse, CarlLa asserts that her upbringing led her down the path of advocacy. Her remarkable 50-year career supporting victims of abuse began in 1979 as part of the team that opened Los Angeles’s first domestic violence shelter. After a myriad of groundbreaking work, Horton became Hope’s Door Executive Director in 1997, where 28 years later she is still moving the organization forward in integral ways. Horton has a keen awareness about the importance of coordinated response in the sensitive world of domestic and intimate partner violence.
Under CarlLa’s leadership, Hope’s Door has greatly expanded its scope of work through the enhancement, collaboration, and development of programs. These programs include the Love Shouldn’t Hurt teen dating abuse initiative; the Next Step Economic Empowerment Program; the Family Justice Center in White Plains; the Westchester County Domestic Violence High Risk Team; the Hope’s Door Legal Center, and most recently, she was appointed to the Executive Board for the Statewide Targeted Reductions in Intimate Partner Violence (STRIVE) program in Yonkers and Mount Vernon.
Beyond her work at Hope’s Door CarlLa Horton has championed issues including affordable and low-income housing, civil rights, health care, reproductive rights, the NYS ERA, childcare, Head Start, immigrant rights, excluded workers, striking nurses, voting rights, pay equity, and contract reform – all rooted in her anti-racist, social justice, and feminist values.
“I have long admired the work of Nonprofit Westchester and am honored to be chosen for this award – I truly could not be more grateful,” states CarlLa Horton.
For more information on NPW’s 2025 Keep Westchester Thriving Awards, view here: https://npwestchester.org/kwt-awards
About Hope’s Door:
Hope’s Door is a non-profit, 501 (c) (3) charity that seeks to end domestic violence and to empower victims to achieve safety, independence, and healing from the trauma of abuse. For more information, go to www.HopesDoorNY.org or call our offices at 914-747-0828. For free and confidential help, call our 24/7 bilingual hotline at 888-438-8700.
About Nonprofit Westchester:
Nonprofit Westchester (NPW) is Westchester’s only membership organization dedicated solely to advancing and advocating for the needs and interests of the county's nonprofit sector, the people and populations served, and the nonprofit workforce. Representing more than 300 members, NPW’s vision is to build a thriving county with vibrant nonprofits and resilient, inclusive communities that value equity and inclusion, innovation, and integrity. The mission of NPW is to strengthen Westchester’s nonprofit organizations as they transform lives, empower communities, and drive positive change. This mission and vision are strengthened through advocacy, education, and connection. To learn more about Nonprofit Westchester, visit their website at www.npwestchester.org
CarlLa Horton is being recognized for her decades-long service within the community, her extraordinary ingenuity, her expertise and resolve in addressing the challenges in Westchester County and her creation of opportunities for all members of the community.
Born in Chicago and raised in a family deeply affected by domestic violence, poverty, and sexual abuse, CarlLa asserts that her upbringing led her down the path of advocacy. Her remarkable 50-year career supporting victims of abuse began in 1979 as part of the team that opened Los Angeles’s first domestic violence shelter. After a myriad of groundbreaking work, Horton became Hope’s Door Executive Director in 1997, where 28 years later she is still moving the organization forward in integral ways. Horton has a keen awareness about the importance of coordinated response in the sensitive world of domestic and intimate partner violence.
Under CarlLa’s leadership, Hope’s Door has greatly expanded its scope of work through the enhancement, collaboration, and development of programs. These programs include the Love Shouldn’t Hurt teen dating abuse initiative; the Next Step Economic Empowerment Program; the Family Justice Center in White Plains; the Westchester County Domestic Violence High Risk Team; the Hope’s Door Legal Center, and most recently, she was appointed to the Executive Board for the Statewide Targeted Reductions in Intimate Partner Violence (STRIVE) program in Yonkers and Mount Vernon.
Beyond her work at Hope’s Door CarlLa Horton has championed issues including affordable and low-income housing, civil rights, health care, reproductive rights, the NYS ERA, childcare, Head Start, immigrant rights, excluded workers, striking nurses, voting rights, pay equity, and contract reform – all rooted in her anti-racist, social justice, and feminist values.
“I have long admired the work of Nonprofit Westchester and am honored to be chosen for this award – I truly could not be more grateful,” states CarlLa Horton.
For more information on NPW’s 2025 Keep Westchester Thriving Awards, view here: https://npwestchester.org/kwt-awards
About Hope’s Door:
Hope’s Door is a non-profit, 501 (c) (3) charity that seeks to end domestic violence and to empower victims to achieve safety, independence, and healing from the trauma of abuse. For more information, go to www.HopesDoorNY.org or call our offices at 914-747-0828. For free and confidential help, call our 24/7 bilingual hotline at 888-438-8700.
About Nonprofit Westchester:
Nonprofit Westchester (NPW) is Westchester’s only membership organization dedicated solely to advancing and advocating for the needs and interests of the county's nonprofit sector, the people and populations served, and the nonprofit workforce. Representing more than 300 members, NPW’s vision is to build a thriving county with vibrant nonprofits and resilient, inclusive communities that value equity and inclusion, innovation, and integrity. The mission of NPW is to strengthen Westchester’s nonprofit organizations as they transform lives, empower communities, and drive positive change. This mission and vision are strengthened through advocacy, education, and connection. To learn more about Nonprofit Westchester, visit their website at www.npwestchester.org
Contact
Hope's Door
Patti D'Agostino
914-747-0828
www.hopesdoorny.org
Patti D'Agostino
914-747-0828
www.hopesdoorny.org
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