Voices of the Innocent: Resistance and Joy
Thursday, September 17, 2026
6:00 p.m. | City Winery Boston
Please join us for our biggest storytelling event and fundraiser, Voices of the Innocent, on September 17 at City Winery Boston. Featuring the stories of those most impacted, Voices of the Innocent: Resistance and Joy creates a unique opportunity to bring our community together in the fight against injustice and helps sustain our work. Mark your calendars!
To learn more or become an event sponsor, please email Sadie Blanco at sadie@newenglandinnocence.org.
More 2026 information coming soon!
2025 Voices of the Innocent Honoree
This year, we celebrate a man whose relentless support of a wrongfully convicted woman made her dreams of freedom come true and whose support of the New England Innocence Project for nearly a decade has helped us realize the dreams of so many others fighting for freedom. It is our distinct honor to present the 2025 ARC OF JUSTICE award to:
Al Kaneb
Al Kaneb is a quiet leader, creating lasting impact and impressions without seeking (and indeed, rejecting) recognition for his many contributions. His leadership in business is known, but his leadership in supporting individuals and community organizations, both local and international, is often unseen except to those of us who witness it first-hand.
When Al learned about Nancy Wagner, a woman wrongfully convicted of murder in Massachusetts and sentenced to life without the possibility of parole, Al became a fierce advocate for her freedom. His relentless support of Nancy, both during and after her thirty years of incarceration, has made a profound impact on her. Al has also been instrumental in ensuring the strength and stability of the New England Innocence Project, becoming a trusted advisor in some of the most difficult times and helping NEIP grow to what it is today.
Al is beloved and revered by his four adult children, 17 grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren. He has touched the lives of so many he knows, as well as many he does not, across New England and the world. Through his persistent and generous spirit, Al continues to bend the arc of the moral universe toward justice.
Sponsorship Opportunities
View our Voices of the Innocent: Resistance and Joy Sponsorship Kit
Our 2025 Sponsors
THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS!
Visionary Partners
Changemakers
Justice Champions
Freedom Contributors
ACLU of Massachusetts
Brown Rudnick LLP
Cooley LLP
Daniel Medwed & Sharissa Jones
Gail Roberts, Ed Feijo & Team
Jason Stone Injury Lawyers
Jones Day
Kirkland & Ellis
McDermott Will & Schulte LLP
Sidley Austin LLP
Thavamani Murugaiah
Vertex Pharmaceuticals
White & Case LLP
Wolf Greenfield
Hope Supporters
Anonymous
Angel Reed and Mitchell Kosht
The Boston Foundation
Choate, Hall & Stewart LLP
DLA Piper
JoAnn (Roberto Luongo) DeNapoli Charitable Foundation, Inc.
The Marinelli Group
McCarter & English, LLP
The Morrison Foerster Foundation
Todd & Weld LLP
Troutman Pepper Locke
Truro Vineyards & South Hollow Spirits
Turco Legal
Vinod & Gita Khilnani
Dream Defender
Deloitte
Eastern Bank
Indigo Associates
Menken Harris
Mintz
Miriam Ervin
Neil and Monique Austin
Special thanks to our 2025 Voices of the Innocent Host Committee
Amy Banks
Sean Ellis
David Siegel
Deena Siegel
Aimee and Jason Stone
Jason Weiner
Daniel Medwed
A Look Back
View our 2025 event video and photo album
Thank you for joining us in 2025!
We had a tremendous night at our sold-out signature fundraiser, Voices of the Innocent, on September 10 at City Winery Boston. Featuring the stories of those most impacted, this powerful event creates a unique opportunity to bring our community together in the fight against injustice and helps sustain our work.
This year, we centered the Dreams of Freedom that persist despite injustice, featuring the stories of those most impacted, including the recent exoneration of our client, Edward Wright. Thanks to your generosity, we are proud to announce that we surpassed our fundraising goal, making more dreams of freedom possible in the years ahead for innocent people and their families.
Photos by Ellen Rogers Photography
About the New England Innocence Project
We free innocent people from prison, support families impacted by incarceration, and
fight to end the oppressive harms of the criminal legal system throughout New England.