Jane Fonda to receive 10th Annual Spirit of Katharine Hepburn Award at the Kate on Sept. 14

Jane Fonda to receive 10th Annual Spirit of Katharine Hepburn Award at the Kate on Sept. 14

Jane Fonda photo by James Franklin

The Katharine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center (the Kate) is thrilled to announce that global icon Jane Fonda will receive the 10th annual Spirit of Katharine Hepburn Award at the Kate’s Gala presented by The RiverLane on Sunday, September 14, 2025. The award is presented each year to an individual who embodies the spirit, independence, and character of the legendary actress.

The Gala is the non-profit arts organization’s largest fundraiser with proceeds supporting performing arts events, the official Katharine Hepburn Museum, and arts education programs that serve more than 3,000 students each year. The event celebrates two women – Katharine Hepburn and Jane Fonda – who guided their careers to their own standards and worked on behalf of human rights, the environment and other important social justice causes. The two co-starred in the critically acclaimed and beloved film On Golden Pondalong with Henry Fonda.

Jane Fonda

Jane Fonda is a two-time Academy Award-winning actor (Best Actress in 1971 for Klute and in 1978 for Coming Home), producer, author, activist, and fitness guru. Her career has spanned over 50 years, accumulating a body of film work that includes more than 50 films and significant contributions to political causes such as women’s rights, Native Americans’ rights, and environmental protection. She is a seven-time Golden Globe® winner and was honored with the Cecil B. DeMille Award in 2021. She accepted The Harry Belafonte Voices for Social Justice Award at the 2023 Tribeca Film Festival. In April of 2024, Fonda accepted the TIME Magazine Earth Award. She also received the SAG Lifetime Achievement Award in February 2025. 

2023 was a banner year for Jane, with four films released. Most recently, she lent her voice to ‘Grandmama’ in DreamWorks’ animated film Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken. Before that, Fonda reunited with Diane Keaton, Mary Steenburgen, and Candice Bergen for Focus Features’ Book Club 2. She also starred in the highly anticipated 80 For Brady opposite Lily Tomlin, Sally Field, and Rita Moreno, released by Paramount Pictures. 

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There was also Moving On by Paul Weitz for Roadside Attractions, in which Fonda starred opposite her longtime friend and colleague, Lily Tomlin. Other notable credits include Grace & Frankie, Netflix’s longest-running original series. For her work on the series, she received an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series in 2017. She also released Jane Fonda in Five Acts, a documentary for HBO chronicling her life and activism.

Fonda continues to lead the charge on the climate emergency via Fire Drill Fridays, the national movement to protest government inaction on climate change, which she started in October 2019 in partnership with Greenpeace USA. In 2022, she launched the Jane Fonda Climate PAC, focused on defeating political allies of the fossil fuel industry. Her latest book, “What Can I Do? My Path From Climate Despair to Action,” details her personal journey with the movement and provides solutions for communities to combat the climate crisis. Notably, Jane celebrated her 85th birthday by raising $1 million for her nonprofit, the Georgia Campaign for Adolescent Power & Potential (GCAPP).

Past recipients of the award include Dick Cavett, Glenn Close, Ann Nyberg, Christine Baranski, Cher, Sam Waterston, Martina Navratilova, Candice Bergen, and Laura Linney.

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