Queen Sofia presides over the Sophia Awards for Excellence

Queen Sofia of Spain has presided over the Sophia Awards for Excellence.

Queen Sofia was received at the Pérez Art Museum Miami by the representative of Florida’s 28th district in the United States House of Representatives, Carlos A. Giménez; the mayor of Miami-Dade County, Daniella Levine; the consul general of Spain in Miami, Belén Alfaro; and the president of the Queen Sophia Spanish Institute Board of Trustees, Pilar Lladó.

© Casa de S.M. el Rey

Queen Sofia presented the awards to two married couples whose work in the Hispanic community left a profound mark. The winners were Jorge M. Pérez and Darlene Boytel-Pérez, and Frank and Haydée Rainieri.

During the ceremony, a proclamation was issued declaring March 21, 2026, as “Queen Sofía Spanish Institute Day” in Miami-Dade County.

According to the official website, The Sophia Award for Excellence, “whose name evokes the Greek word Sophia (“wisdom”), distinguishes those who have fostered international appreciation of Spain and the Americas through the generous contribution of time, experience and vision in the fields of science, the arts or the humanities.”