Baltic-American Freedom Foundation Chair Appointed Commander of the Latvian Cross of Recognition
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In a presentation of State Awards ceremony today, the President of the Republic of Latvia appointed Kim G. Davis, Chairperson of the Baltic-American Freedom Foundation (BAFF), a Commander of the State Award, Cross of Recognition, for his continuous work to strengthen ties between the United States and Latvia.
Kim G. Davis, co-chairman and a founding partner of Charlesbank Capital Partners, has served pro bono for 25 years, first when he was appointed a Director of the Baltic-American Enterprise Fund by President Clinton in 1994, and since 2010 as the Chairman of its successor foundation, the Baltic-American Freedom Foundation. He was instrumental in establishing BAFF’s mission to provide opportunities for citizens of the Baltic states to gain education and professional development through exchanges in the United States.
Since its inception, BAFF scholarships have enabled more than 300 Baltic university students to gain real-world skills and valuable firsthand insight into American business practices and culture through professional internships in U.S. businesses and non-profit organizations. In addition, BAFF support has provided nearly 70 Baltic academic researchers with the opportunity to complete research in collaboration with U.S. colleagues. And more than 200 high school students have benefited from entrepreneurship training through BAFF Leadership Academy.
BAFF scholarship programs are administered and supported by CIEE: Council on International Educational Exchange, a nonprofit intercultural exchange organization that also administers scholarship programs on behalf of the Albanian- American Development Foundation, the Hungarian-American Enterprise Scholarship Fund, and the Romanian-American Foundation.
“We’re so pleased to see Kim’s efforts on behalf of BAFF recognized with this significant honor,” said Laura Lyons, Director of Exchange Foundations at CIEE. “He has done so much to support both Latvian economic development and the growth of education and exchange programs that build and strengthen bonds of friendship and goodwill between the American people and the citizens of the Baltic states.”