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Remise de la Legion d’Honneur a M. Jean-Michel Giraud 

Residence, le 27 mai 2025 

Ladies and gentlemen, dear friends, I’m delighted to welcome you to the Residence de France for this ceremony honoring Jean-Michel Giraud, the president and CEO of Friendship Place. 

Cher Jean-Michel,  

You hail from the French department of lsere, and more specifically, from the commune of La Cote Saint Andre, which happens to be the birthplace of the famous composer Hector Berlioz. 

At a young age, you were already driven by a strong desire for independence and a wish to discover the world. Two days after your 18 th birthday, you left France, seeking adventure and self sufficiency across the Atlantic. 

That was where you realized that you wanted a career where you could serve the most vulnerable. But perhaps your dedication to serving others had begun much earlier. At age 10, you took part in your first fundraiser at a school fair in your village of Beaufort, to raise money for a school trip. You scrambled to gain the support of the entire village and managed to sell 70 envelopes all by yourself. 

“For nearly two decades now, you’ve headed Friendship Place, an association that helps people experiencing homelessness to rebuild their lives, thanks to emergency and long-term housing solutions, job placement services and facilitated access to care. 

When you joined the organization in 2006, it was a local player serving a few hundred people. Now, with nearly 200 partners, it benefits more than 3,000 people each year.” 

That impressive growth was spearheaded by a strong vision based on the Housing First approach, which you adopted, refined and spread far beyond Washington. A number of institutions have sought your expertise, notably the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Government of the District of Columbia. 

The extraordinary community spirit and leadership skills you demonstrated from the very beginning of your career were acknowledged in 2010, when you received the Meyer Foundation’s Exponent Award, which honors the area’s most visionary non-profit leaders. 

And of course, there’s your dedication to the French community. You’re a crucial figure in the Comite Tricolore. You’ve lent a hand to French citizens in need, found concrete solutions and opened doors. 

Jean-Michel Giraud, your entire career has been characterized by /a fraternite, one of the cornerstones of the French Republic. It is this vital contribution that we honor today in presenting you with the Legion d’Honneur. 

Au nom du President de la Republique et en vertu des pouvoirs qui nous sont conferes, nous vous faisons Chevalier de la Legion d’Honneur.