The Carnegie Corporation of New York has named its 2018 Great Immigrant Award recipients—with Bernard Cherkasov among them.
Cherkasov ( who is from Azerbaijan ) is a former CEO of Equality Illinois, and is the current executive director of Cradles to Crayons Chicago, a nonprofit that provides underprivileged children with clothes, school supplies and other essentials.
A 2018 NBC Out #Pride 30 honoree, which recognizes 30 LGBTQ individuals, Cherkasov lives with his husband and daughter in Chicago.
For 2018, the honorees represent 30 different countries of origin, a range of personal immigration experiences, and high-level leadership in numerous fields. A few of the other honorees included actor Oscar Isaac ( Guatemala ), singer Regina Spektor ( Russia ), architect Daniel Libeskind ( Poland ), actor/writer Kumail Nanjiani ( Pakistan ), actress Yvonne Orji ( Nigeria ), New York State Supreme Court Justice Carmen R. Velasquez ( Ecuador ) and biophysicist Joachim Frank ( Germany ).
