GREENWOOD, S.C. – Connie Maxwell Children’s Ministries has been awarded a 2025 Southeast Regional EMMY for its six-part, narrative short film series, For the Dreams of Children, in the category of Outstanding Public Service Announcement Campaign. The final film in the series, Dream On, also received a prestigious 2025 Birmingham Gold ADDY Award, the highest creative honor from the American Advertising Awards.
“National recognition for this film series reveals that God is at work raising up Connie Maxwell to realize its vision to become a national leader in healing and ministry for vulnerable children and families,” said Danny Nicholson, President of Connie Maxwell Children’s Ministries.
Created to educate and inspire, For the Dreams of Children highlights Connie Maxwell’s mission to restore the faith, family, and future of vulnerable children through Christ-centered care. Featuring heartfelt testimonies and faith-filled stories from alumni and students, the series reflects how Connie Maxwell has been caring for the dreams of children for more than 130 years.
“We have this beautiful, rich history of caring for kids and yet, I feel like our future is even brighter,” said Jay Boyd, Connie Maxwell’s Senior Vice President of Strategy & Engagement. “We’re going to be able to enhance our services and care for more kids.”
The film series debuted at the For the Dreams of Children Gala in November 2024 as part of Connie Maxwell’s $25 million capital campaign, which will expand facilities and trauma-informed services to provide more children a safe environment to heal from broken pasts.
“The film series really brought the campaign to life,” Boyd continued. “Winning an EMMY and Gold ADDY signifies that Connie Maxwell’s mission and vision resonate with an audience that’s far beyond our staff, volunteers, and donors.”
Boyd also credited the awards to the expertise of the production partner, Cedar Creative. “When you combine a compelling mission of helping kids with a bold vision that drives change and the amazing talent of Cedar Creative, the result is award-winning work. It’s a hard combination to beat,” Boyd said.
While Boyd offered initial direction, Cedar Creative brought the vision to life with creative freedom. On their website, the company says, “We strove to show how every child who comes to Connie Maxwell will find a home to dream freely, trust fully, and grow courageously.”
“We feel extremely blessed to have been a part of this project,” said Kevin Johnson of Cedar Creative. “Who doesn’t want to help kids dream again? We have all felt that in our own lives—and you’ve got to have that. It’s part of childhood.”
For Johnson and his team, the recognition of the awards is secondary to the real-life stories in the films. “It’s cool that there’s this recognition but what means the most to us is people watching these stories,” Johnson said. “Not to see our work, but to see the impact that Connie Maxwell is making. It’s incredible what that place is doing.”
The For the Dreams of Children film series can be viewed at: https://conniemaxwell.com/videos/.
For media inquiries, contact Carlee Hoopes, Director of Digital Marketing at choopes@conniemaxwell.com.
