CHESTER – Andy Schatz of Westbrook will be the recipient of the 2017 Philip Scheffler Pursuers of Peace and Justice Award, given by Congregation Beth Shalom Rodfe Zedek in Chester.

Schatz, an attorney, will receive the award due to his work in civil liberties and social justice – advocating on behalf of health care for the poor, rights for the disabled, improved educational opportunities for minorities, consumer protection and a host of other public causes. He will be honored at a Shabbat service on Saturday, April 10 at 10:30 a.m., followed by a luncheon, the award presentation and a panel discussion on social justice and the news media.

Schatz is a graduate of Harvard Law School, where he was editor of the Harvard Civil Rights, Civil Liberties Law Review. He has served over the years for organizations including Advocates for the Handicapped, Legal Aid of Chicago, West Hartford Community Television, the Jewish Community Foundation of Greater Hartford, the American Civil Liberties Union, both as a national board and executive committee member, and as president and vice president of the Connecticut chapter. He has pursued successful class action litigation regarding consumer and anti-trust matters, challenges to strip searches of female arrestees, school segregation and government intrusion, and has worked on issues involving the rights of prisoners. He has been the chair of the CBSRZ Social Action committee over the last five years.

The award is named after Philip Scheffler, a congregant who had a long career at CBS News as a producer and as executive of 60 Minutes and who died in April 2016.

The panel discussion will feature Schatz; James Jacoby, a former colleague of Scheffler at CBS News; Allan Appel, of the New Haven Independent; and Jeff Cohen (WNPR).

The event is open to the public. To accommodate all who wish to attend, the congregation asks that those interested RSVP by calling the CBSRZ office at (860) 526-8920, or by registering online at www.cbsrz.org.