WHO WILL BE THE NEXT CNN HERO OF THE YEAR? GET TO KNOW THE TOP 5

EDITOR’S NOTE:  CNN Heroes: An All-Star Tribute will broadcast on CNN, CNN International and CNN en Español on Saturday, December 6. It will stream live for pay TV subscribers via CNN.com, CNN connected TV and mobile apps.

These five people are making the world a better place with their kindness, compassion, and courage. They are the Top 5 CNN Heroes of 2025, a group of everyday people who saw problems and found unique ways to help solve them.

Every CNN Hero’s journey begins with a nomination from members of the CNN audience who are inspired by their efforts. Each of the Top 5 CNN Heroes will be awarded $10,000 and the CNN Hero of the Year will receive an additional $100,000 to continue their inspiring work.

Joining this year’s broadcast to help honor the CNN Heroes and share their stories are three-time Academy Award winner Meryl Streep, seven-time Grammy, Academy, and Emmy Award winner Jon Batiste, Primetime Emmy and Golden Globe nominee Kathryn Hahn, NAACP Image Award winner Regina Hall, Primetime Emmy and Golden Globe nominee Parker Posey, Primetime Emmy nominee and star of NBC’s Brilliant Minds Zachary Quinto, Daytime Emmy winner Kelly Ripa and Primetime Emmy and Golden Globe nominee Adam Scott.

This year, the third annual CNN Heroes Legacy Award will continue the new tradition of honoring not-so-everyday people dedicated to a lifetime of service by recognizing Robert Redford with a special tribute and appearance by former Vice President Al Gore accepting the award on behalf of the Redford family. Redford’s unwavering advocacy for the planet through activism, storytelling, and decades of public engagement embodies the profound, lasting impact the Legacy Award seeks to honor.

CNN Heroes will also honor Cash Daniels as this year’s Young Wonder. A Chattanooga native, he grew up spending a lot of time around the Tennessee River. When he learned how polluted the river was, he decided to do something about it. Now 16, Daniels, ‘The Conservation Kid,’ has spent more than half his life working to clean the waterway and inspire others to protect nature around them.

The Top 5 CNN Heroes will receive a grant along with organizational and capacity-building support from The Elevate Prize Foundation, a global nonprofit on a mission to Make Good Famous, committed to bringing visibility to the work of changemakers and inspiring the world.

CNN has teamed up with Pledge, the award-winning fundraising platform trusted by millions, to power giving for this year’s Heroes. Supporters can learn more and make online donations to the Top 5 CNN Heroes’ nonprofits directly from CNN.com/Heroes.

The CNN Hero of the Year will be revealed during “CNN Heroes: An All-Star Tribute,” hosted by Anderson Cooper and Laura Coates, airing on Saturday, December 6, at 8 p.m. ET.

Read more about each of this year’s Top 5 CNN Heroes below:

Quilen Blackwell: Using flowers to empower at-risk youth

While tutoring high school students in Englewood, a community on Chicago’s South Side, Blackwell saw all the challenges young people there faced. So he moved there, and for more than a decade, he’s cultivated opportunities that help them flourish.

His social enterprise, Southside Blooms, transforms vacant lots into eco-friendly flower farms and employs 25 local young people to grow, arrange, and sell flowers at the group’s nonprofit flower shop.

“This is about creating real and tangible opportunity in a place that desperately needs it. Our young people are blossoming and blooming every single day.”

Read Quilen’s full story

Heidi Carman: Easing stress for first responders

When massive wildfires hit California in 2020, Carman and her certified therapy dog, Kerith, made it their mission to comfort firefighters working on the front lines. The experience led her to realize the national need for this type of support, so she started First Responder Therapy Dogs.

Since 2021, her nonprofit has certified more than 500 therapy dog teams and provided much-needed stress relief to more than 150,000 first responders in 46 states.

“We have helped so many people. I’m grateful to Kerith for showing me the way.”

Read Heidi’s full story

Hillary Cohen: Rescuing gourmet meals to feed LA’s hungry

While working as an assistant director in Hollywood, Cohen enjoyed the gourmet crew meals served every day on set but was appalled that the leftovers were thrown away. So, she co-founded Every Day Action.

The nonprofit organizes volunteers and industry professionals to pick up food from film and TV sets, as well as other businesses, and deliver it to people in need. Since 2020, the group has rescued more than 270,000 meals – reducing hunger and keeping the food out of landfills.

“Giving someone that’s hungry, food – is the best thing one can do. Now more than ever, we have to help each other.”

Read Hillary’s full story

Debra Des Vignes: Transforming lives behind bars

After spending a decade as a crime reporter, Des Vignes volunteered at a prison to better understand the people behind the stories she covered. The experience inspired her to start the Indiana Prison Writers Workshop.

Her 12-week creative writing program provides a safe space for incarcerated people to share their stories, process trauma, and find community. Since 2018, the program has expanded to eight correctional institutions across Indiana, Alabama, and Illinois, benefiting more than 250 incarcerated individuals.

“Learning their stories and where they come from puts it all into perspective. It’s given my life meaning, purpose.”

Read Debra’s full story

Tim Woodward: Offering a lifeline to abused animals

Woodward has dedicated his life to saving forgotten and abused animals, and as an animal welfare worker, he realized there was a gap in the system for responding to large-scale cruelty cases. In 2011, he co-founded Animal Rescue Corps.

His organization mobilizes to rescue large numbers of abused animals from horrific conditions and give them a new start in life. To date, he and his group have helped save more than 10,000 animals from further suffering.

“My hope for the animals is that they have the best life possible and that they forget all about where they came from.”

Read Tim’s full story

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2025-10-29T12:28:36Z