Gregory Boyle, S.J., M.A. ’85, founder of Homeboy Industries, was honored with the 2025 Doshi Family Bridgebuilder Award at Loyola Marymount University on Feb. 10, 2025. Drawing from personal anecdotes and concepts from his newly released fourth book, “Cherished Belonging: The Healing Power of Love in Divided Times,” Boyle delivered a touching lecture to the Lion community alongside musical performances and two “homies,” who were guest speakers.
“Putting one loving foot in front of the next is the only thing we can do … We’re all just walking each other home to wholeness and wellness,” Boyle said.
Since 2005, the Doshi Family Bridgebuilder Award has annually celebrated those who foster understanding between cultures, communities, and disciplines, embodying the spirit of interconnectedness and compassion. The award’s allocation is made possible by its namesake benefactors, Navin and Pratima Doshi, and their family, as part of their longstanding dedication to forward movement in higher education.
Hundreds of community members gathered in St. Robert’s Auditorium to honor Boyle’s three decades of work with Homeboy Industries, the world’s largest program for gang intervention, rehabilitation, and re-entry. Throughout the afternoon, Christopher Key Chapple, Ph.D., Doshi Professor of Indic and Comparative Theology and director of the Master of Arts in Yoga Studies, welcomed guests to the stage who praised Boyle’s efforts and shared moving testimonials of his transformative impact on their lives. Vocal performances offered a glimpse into Homeboy Industries’ upcoming original musical production, “Homeboys, A Musical.”
“Father Boyle’s holistic approach to providing employment, education, support services, and most importantly, radical kinship, has created a model for community healing and empowerment,” said Sonya Doshi-McCarthy as she, joined by Pratima Doshi and other members of the Doshi family, presented Boyle the award.
Past recipients of the Doshi Bridgebuilder Award include civil rights leader Rev. James Lawson, conductor Zubin Mehta, religious scholar Huston Smith, and spiritual author Deepak Chopra. The annual presentation ceremony is jointly sponsored by Bellarmine College of Liberal Arts, the Department of Theological Studies, Yoga Studies, and the Navin and Pratima Doshi Professorship of Indic and Comparative Theology.
“Curiosity leads you to let go of judgment, and then pretty soon you’re delighting, and then you’re savoring,” Boyle told a rapt audience. “That’s how we move beyond the urge to (give up and) ‘take a nap.’ Curiosity kills the cats, but it also negates judgment.” With humor and heartfelt storytelling, Boyle urged his audience to reject judgment, embrace tenderness, and remember to act out of love.
