Two stalwarts of the marriage equality movement received medals from President Joe Biden in a ceremony at the White House on Jan. 2.

Attorneys Mary Bonauto and Evan Wolfson were awarded Presidential Citizens Medals, the second-highest civilian honor behind the Presidential Medal of Freedom. 

Bonauto, 63, led the charge to legalize same-sex marriage in Maine and Massachusetts, laying the foundation for the Supreme Court’s landmark ruling in 2015, which granted same-sex couples across the country the right to marry. 

“Her efforts made millions of families whole and forged a more perfect union,” the White House statement read. 

Wolfson, 67, founded Freedom to Marry and is credited with penning perhaps the most influential book on marriage equality, Why Marriage Matters; America, Equality and Gay People’s Right to Marry. 

The White House said Wolfson, “worked with singular focus and untiring optimism to change not just the law, but society — pioneering a political playbook for change and sharing its lessons, even now, with countless causes worldwide.” 

Overall, 20 people received medals in one of Biden’s final ceremonies as president.