ASCENSION SUPPORTS BWA’S
“BECAUSE WE CARE” INITIATIVE
One of the highlights of The Black Women’s Agenda, Inc.’s 40th Annual Symposium Workshop & Awards Luncheon was the announcement of a $50,000 donation to BWA made by Patricia A. Maryland, Dr.PH, President and Chief Executive Officer of Ascension Healthcare, Vice President, Ascension, and BWA’s 2017 Health Award recipient.
Ascension, the nation’s largest non-profit health system, is a faith-based healthcare organization dedicated to transformation through innovation across the continuum of care. The company’s donation will support Because We Care – BWA’s healthcare initiative – which Dr. Maryland praised for the valuable service it provides to the African-American community. “It has been my life’s work to ensure that health care is seen as a universal and fundamental right for all,” she said. “One of my greatest wishes is to achieve a just and inclusive policy of healthcare that leaves no one behind – in our country, and, do we dare dream it – our world.”
The Because We Care initiative was established by BWA in 2014 as a series of free forums that provided Black women across the country with resources and tools to take better care of their loved ones and themselves. Last year, the organization expanded the initiative, introducing “Love Letters,” a critical information template that helps families begin the often-difficult conversation about providing and receiving care. During BWA’s 40th Annual Symposium Workshop, participants were encouraged to explore strategies that would enable them to live their best lives at every age.
“As women, providing care, compassion, and support to our families and loved ones is something that we do almost instinctively,” explained BWA President Gwainevere Catchings Hess. Because We Care reminds us that we must take care of our own physical, mental and emotional health with the same passion and sense of purpose.”
OTHER NEWS
MAY IS LUPUS AWARENESS MONTH
Have you noticed a lot of people donning the color purple this month? It could be because May is Lupus Awareness Month. “Pump up the Purple” is the call to action for a campaign to raise awareness and funds for lupus research and education programs.
Lupus is a chronic auto-immune disease that can adversely impact many parts of the body. There are several different kinds of lupus, and no two cases are alike.
LIVING YOUR BEST LIFE: I AM THE CHANGE FORUM
Please join the Black Women’s Agenda, AARP and the National Collaborating Organizations, as we discuss the new realities of African American Women and modern aging. This forum is designed to inspire women to live their best life.
BWA VICE PRESIDENT KIMBERLY JEFFRIES LEONARD ELECTED NATIONAL PRESIDENT OF THE LINKS, INCORPORATED
The Black Women’s Agenda, Inc. (BWA) offers heartfelt congratulations to Dr. Kimberly Jeffries Leonard, BWA’s Vice President of Administration who was elected the 17th National President of The Links, Incorporated at the organization’s 41st National Assembly in Indianapolis.
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