COLUMBUS—Columbus Metropolitan Library Foundation (CMLF) will honor David Brown as the 2025 recipient of the JSS Award, and Patrick Losinski as the recipient of the Foundation Award. Both will be recognized at the Foundation’s 33rd annual Celebration of Learning fundraising event on Friday, Nov. 7 at Main Library.
Each year, CMLF presents the JSS Award to honor inspiring individuals living or working in and around Franklin County with a passion for lifelong learning.
The Foundation Award is given periodically to recognize an individualwho has made an exceptional impact on Columbus Metropolitan Library (CML) and/or CMLF.
David Brown is a conductor, producer, and community builder whose work has transformed how people connect through the arts. As the founder of Harmony Project, Brown has spent more than 30 years using music to unite individuals across cultural, racial, and socioeconomic divides – creating spaces for belonging from Carnegie Hall to correctional institutions, and from national television to neighborhood classrooms.
Brown’s choirs have performed behind Grammy-winning artists and on stages including Lincoln Center, the Apollo Theater, Madison Square Garden, and Nationwide Arena. His work has been
featured on “The Today Show,” “Good Morning America,” “CBS Sunday Morning,” and “The Kelly Clarkson Show,” and was the subject of the ABC/Hulu special “Finding Harmony.” His innovative programming – delivered in schools, shelters, prisons, and boardrooms – emphasizes service over skill, requiring every performer to give back to their community before stepping on stage.
His efforts have generated thousands of hours of volunteer engagement annually and earned recognition from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Ford Foundation, and the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction. Brown is a recipient of the Spirit of Columbus Award, the Norman Vincent Peale Award, and was named New Yorker of the Week.
Patrick Losinski served as CEO of CML from 2002-2024. Over his 22-year tenure, he redefined the role of public libraries, leading transformative initiatives that expanded access, equity, and innovation.
Under his leadership, CML adopted three strategic focuses – Young Minds, My Library, and Life Skills – and launched system-wide School Help to support K-12 students. He oversaw the renovation or rebuilding of 18 library locations, eliminated overdue fines, and welcomed nearly 4,000 library professionals from 135 countries to Columbus for the IFLA World Library and Information Congress in 2016.
Losinski guided the library through the COVID-19 pandemic, championed digital equity as co-chair of the Franklin County Digital Equity Coalition, and spoke out against censorship efforts. His commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion shaped both hiring practices and programming.
His accolades include Library Journal’s Library of the Year (2010), the Institute of Museum and Library Services National Medal (2011), Columbus CEO’s CEO of the Year (2015), and Columbus Business First’s Lifetime Achievement Award (2018). He now serves as Senior Advisor for Library Services at Gresham Smith, supporting library design strategies across the U.S.
Celebration of Learning, CMLF’s annual fundraiser, will be held at Main Library on Friday, Nov. 7 and feature bestselling author Ann Patchett. The 2025 honorary chairs are Columbus City Councilmember Otto Beatty and Christie Angel. Event co-chairs are Shannon Morgan and Marjorie Duffy. Event proceeds support the library’s greatest needs and highest priorities.
Visit CMLF’s Celebration of Learning webpage for more information.
Columbus Metropolitan Library Foundation is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) charitable organization that provides financial support for the library’s greatest needs and long-range goals through generous private donations, ensuring the library’s collections, programs and services will be available for generations of learners to come.
