Jerry Sampson was the founding advocate for the Jewish Public Affairs Committee of California, which he co-founded in 1972, making it the first statewide Jewish advocacy organization in the nation. Jerry served as the JPAC advocate in the State Capitol until his death in 1984. Though Jerry was known for being a tenacious advocate for public interests, representing clients like JPAC and the United Way, he was also admired from both sides of the aisle for his honesty and integrity.
The Jerry Sampson Memorial Award is awarded annually to a California State Legislator who embodies the spirit and dedication to good civic government that Jerry represented and whose leadership and advocacy on behalf of the organized Jewish community’s priority concerns have been exemplary.
Previous Jerry Sampson Memorial Awardees:
2000: The Hon. John Burton
2001: The Hon. Bob Hertzberg
2002: The Hon. Kevin Shelley
2003: The Hon. Marco Firebaugh
2004: The Hon. Darrell Steinberg
2005: No award given
2006: The Hon. Rebecca Cohn
2007: The Hon. Lloyd Levine
2008: The Hon. John Laird
2009: The Hon. Karen Bass
