LCA Fellow Leon Ashford Assists in Creating Hare Wynn Foundation

Cite as 3 Litigation Commentary & Rev. 17 (March 2010)

A few days before Christmas in 2008, Matt Minner, a partner at Hare, Wynn, Newell & Newton, a Birmingham, Alabama-based plaintiffs law firm, received a letter from the mother of a Marine. The son, 21 years old and an only child, had been in Iraq for more than three months. The letter included the following:

“I have talked to him on the phone, but have not seen him in 99 days, until I saw him on the TV screen in your office.   What a great Christmas present for this Mama.  We have never been apart for any holiday, and I will never forget that moment of seeing him on that screen, and I am very thankful to your law firm.”

This letter was not about Hare Wynn’s representation in a trial or a case mediation or any other legal activity. It was the result of a decision by the Hare Wynn Foundation to open up its video conference center in support of Operation Freedom Calls, a program providing free video teleconferencing to all families who have soldiers serving in three cities in Iraq: Fallujah, Taji and Al Asad.

The Hare Wynn Foundation is a 501(c)(3) organization formed to serve the charitable initiatives of Hare, Wynn, Newell & Newton, LLP the oldest existing plaintiff's law firm in the State of Alabama. The non-profit foundation was established in 2008.

Matt Minner, is the President of the Hare Wynn Foundation and he sees the organization and its support of programs like Operation Freedom Calls as an extension of the “Hare Wynn family.”

"Everyone in our firm, from our most senior partner to our summer law clerks and entire staff are committed to giving back and serving children, service members, our seniors or anyone in our community in times of need. When we found about the tremendous work of Operation Freedom Calls it was a natural fit for us. We produced public service announcements for radio and purchased ads in area newspapers in order to raise awareness about the Hare Wynn Freedom Calls. We provided our videoconferencing suite for family members who were eager to connect with their loved ones serving in the military in the Middle East. It was a heart-warming Holiday experience to watch the pure joy of those family members when they actually saw and spoke to their loved ones serving in Iraq.” 

Leon Ashford is the Managing Partner at Hare, Wynn, Newell & Newton.

"Our firm is fortunate to have been a part of the central Alabama community for more than one hundred years.  During that time, we have had the opportunity to represent thousands of families and small businesses during their time of need.  The Hare Wynn Foundation is just another way for us to serve the people of Alabama and extend a helping hand."

The Christmas season, perhaps more than any other time of the year, brings to light the needs of our fellow citizens, especially the smallest and youngest among us.

What started as a casual hallway conversation between Nolan Awbrey and several of his law partners led to the Hare Wynn Foundation’s support of a Salvation Army program to help provide Christmas gifts and clothes for needy children throughout Jefferson, Shelby and St. Clair counties in Central Alabama.

“We saw an article in the local paper about a shortfall in donations to the Angel Tree program and we saw this is an opportunity to help but more importantly challenge other law firms and businesses to step up and eradicate this funding gap,” says Nolan.  "We decided to do all we could do to help these children have a real Christmas.”

The Foundation made a significant donation which provided gifts for more than 100 children and spurred other donations to the Angel Tree program from area businesses.

The spokeswoman for the Salvation Army, which operates the Angel Tree campaign, said the donation was another example of the way those who live in the Birmingham area have helped the program despite the recession.

"We didn't know what the response would be, but it's been good,” said Tree Davidson with the Salvation Army’s Angel Tree program.

“No child should have a Christmas without a present to unwrap," states Nolan Aubrey, “and we just wanted to do our part to help put smiles on those faces on Christmas morning.”

“The opportunities to be servant leaders for our community through giving back are abundant,” says Matt Minner. “We look forward to continuing to reach out and touch the lives of those in need in a meaningful way.”

Leon Ashford believes, “Giving back is a privilege. We will continue to search for  opportunities and provide as much help as we possibly can to those in need in our community.”