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ILVA Foundation Celebrates Board Member Victoria B. Bjorklund, JD, PhD, on Receiving the Insignia of Knight of the Légion d’Honneur
New York, NY — The ILVA Foundation is proud to celebrate our esteemed Board Member and Secretary, Victoria B. Bjorklund, JD, PhD, on being awarded the insignia of Knight of the Légion d’Honneur, France’s highest distinction.
Victoria was formally decorated on September 10, 2025, at a ceremony presided over by Cédrik Fouriscot, Consul General of France in New York, with remarks by Axelle Davezac, President of the Board of Friends of Fondation de France, and Dr. Francis Charhon, Member of the Board of Friends of Fondation de France.
Created by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1802, the Légion d’Honneur recognizes individuals of outstanding merit who have rendered extraordinary service to France. For non-French citizens, this award is a particularly rare honor, symbolizing both the strength of ties between France and the United States and the profound contributions of the recipient to those connections.
Victoria’s career reflects an unparalleled dedication to the advancement of philanthropy, both in the United States and internationally. A Retired Partner at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP, she founded and led the firm’s Tax-Exempt Organizations Group for three decades, while also teaching nonprofit law at Harvard Law School for nine years. She helped establish Doctors Without Borders USA in 1989 and today chairs its Board of Advisors. She has also played a founding role in building numerous philanthropic institutions, including Friends of Fondation de France, Friends of the Institut des Hautes Études Scientifiques (IHES), and American Friends of the Louvre.
In addition to her service with ILVA Foundation, Victoria currently serves on the boards of the Robin Hood Foundation, the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, and the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. She is also a former Trustee of Princeton University, where she continues to co-chair the Planned Giving Advisory Committee.
As ILVA Foundation joins in celebrating Victoria’s extraordinary achievement, we are reminded of the transformative power of philanthropy to transcend borders and strengthen ties across communities and nations.