Founder member of California Conference for Equality and Justice receives Pioneer Spirit Award

Gene Lentzner, a human-relations activist for over 50 years in the greater Long Beach, Los Alamitos and Seal Beach areas, received the 2012 Pioneer Spirit Award from Tom Ahlstrom at the annual Pioneer Day Picnic. Held each July at Rush Park in Rossmoor, the event is where the local Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints celebrates the arrival of the Mormon pioneers who first entered the Salt Lake Valley in 1847 to create a new home. The Pioneer Spirit Award is given to members of the community who are not of the LDS faith and have demonstrated a pioneering spirit in their own lives.
Lentzner has been promoting racial, religious and cultural understanding for nearly 60 years. He was a founding member of the National Conference of Christians and Jews (NCCJ), which is now the California Conference for Equality and Justice. At 80 years of age, he is still actively engaged on a daily basis in promoting human relations and dignity throughout local communities.