Supreme Court of Ohio Justice Evelyn Lundberg Stratton received a 2008 Ellis Island Medal of Honor at a ceremony Saturday in New York City.
Established in 1986 by the National Ethnic Coalition of Organizations, the Ellis Island Medals of Honor pay tribute to American citizens of diverse origins for their outstanding contributions to their communities, their nation and the world. Ranking among the nation's most prestigious awards, recipients are listed in the Congressional Record.
Each year the medal ceremony celebrates the immigrant experience on Ellis Island, through which millions of immigrants passed on their way to a new life in America. To date, some 1,000 American citizens have received Ellis Island Medals of Honor, including six U.S. Presidents, U.S. Supreme Court Justices, members of the U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives, Nobel Prize winners, military heroes, athletes, artists and leaders of industry. Other prominent recipients include Muhammad Ali, Bob Hope and Rosa Parks.
"I'm deeply moved and honored to be included with such generous individuals," Justice Stratton said. "Growing up in a country on the other side of the world and then coming to America to live, work and raise a family gave me, I think, an even greater appreciation for all the ideals that this country holds dear. I was especially excited to take my 86-year-old mother with me as her father came from Norway to America through Ellis Island."
Justice Stratton was born to missionary parents in Bangkok, Thailand, and spent her childhood in Southeast Asia, attending boarding school in South Vietnam during the height of the Vietnam War, and later in Malaysia, coming to the United States periodically with her parents. At 18, she returned to America alone with only a few hundred dollars. She worked her way through school, receiving a law degree from The Ohio State University. In 1989, Justice Stratton was the first woman judge elected to the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas. She remained in that position until 1996, when she was appointed to the Supreme Court, later elected to a full term and re-elected in 2002.
Justice Stratton is committed to the community, and her efforts have led to major changes in adoption law. As chairperson of a national committee, she has led a nationwide effort to speed up adoption appeals. Justice Stratton also provided strong leadership as a member of the boards of trustees for the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption and Prevent Blindness Ohio.
With a partnership between courts and the mental health system, Justice Stratton believes many defendants whose mental illness is the basis of their criminal activity can be helped. She formed the Supreme Court of Ohio Advisory Committee on Mental Illness and the Courts, a task force that includes mental health, legal and criminal justice professionals from around the state. The committee focuses on mental health initiatives in the court system and how to effectively implement such programs.
Justice Stratton leads several national efforts toward helping persons with mental illness. She is a co-founder and past co-chair of the Judges' Leadership Initiative, which supports mental health efforts, and co-chairs the Returning Home Advisory Commission, which assists with prisoner re-entry to reduce recidivism and its cost to society.
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