On Friday, October 24, 2025, at the Best Buddies Homecoming: Two Parties One Purpose Gala, Best Buddies CEO Anthony Kennedy Shriver and Tiffany & Co. representatives Allyson Waldrep and Chris Leveille presented longtime Best Buddies supporter James W. Lintott, Founder and Chairman of Sterling Foundation Management, with the 2025 Diane Ray Brown Lifetime of Friendship Award.

The Diane Ray Brown Lifetime of Friendship Award is the highest honor that Best Buddies Capital Region can bestow on a member of our community. Honorees are recognized for their philanthropic spirit, generosity, and steadfast dedication to Best Buddies’ mission of friendship and inclusion for all.

In 2021, Tiffany & Co. initiated a partnership with Best Buddies in Virginia & DC to launch this annual award for the Washington metropolitan area. During her lifetime, Diane Ray Brown was a passionate supporter and volunteer for Best Buddies in the Capital Region, and the organization is honored that Tiffany & Co. continues to celebrate Diane’s remarkable life and enduring legacy through this award.

Allyson Waldrep, Chris Leveille, Jim Lintott and Anthony K. Shriver

For more than three decades, Jim Lintott has embodied that same spirit of friendship and inclusion. A consecutive donor to Best Buddies for 31 years, with lifetime giving nearing $4 million, Jim’s generosity has fueled opportunity, inclusion, and connection across the globe.

“I will never forget Jim Lintott in the early nineties joining Best Buddies, helping to celebrate the Best Buddies gala here in Washington, DC, becoming an incredible friend of my mother and my dad and joining our board in 2006. The rest is history. I look forward to decades more of working together. There’s no doubt the organization would not have had the same impact without you. Your integrity, your commitment shine brighter than anybody else in the room. It’s my great privilege tonight to celebrate you, Jim Lintott.” — Anthony K. Shriver

Through his unwavering commitment, Jim reminds us that friendship, opportunity, and inclusion truly change lives. As the night came to a close, one message resonated clearly: the impact of friendship lasts a lifetime — and leaders like Jim Lintott help ensure that legacy continues for generations to come.

Jim Lintott and Mae Lintott