Type Medal Established 1969 | Status Active First awarded 1973 | |
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Awarded for "Exemplary deeds or services [performed] for his or her country or fellow citizens." | ||
The Presidential Citizens Medal is an award bestowed by the President of the United States. It is the second-highest civilian award in the United States, second only to the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Established by executive order on November 13, 1969, by President Richard Nixon, it recognizes an individual "who has performed exemplary deeds or services for his or her country or fellow citizens." The award is only eligible to United States citizens and may be awarded posthumously.
The medal is a disc of gilt and enamel, based on the Seal of the President of the United States, with the eagle surrounded by a wreath of leaves. The medal is suspended on a ribbon, dark blue with a light blue central stripe and white edge stripes.
Recipients
Hubert Dickey Ballantine and Martin Mathews were jointly awarded the 1981 Citizens Medal as founders of the Mathews-Dickey Boy's Club.
The teachers Rachel Davino, Anne Marie Murphy, Lauren Rousseau, and Victoria Soto and school administrators Mary Sherlach and Dawn Hochsprung, who perished in the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting defending their students, were jointly awarded the 2012 Citizens Medal posthumously.