Los Angeles’ First Black Woman Mayor, Karen Bass, Will Receive The Humanitarian Of The Year
On Sunday, October 22nd The Association of Black Women Physicians (ABWP) is proud to announce that Los Angeles’ first Black woman mayor, the honorable Karen Bass, will be receiving the prestigious Humanitarian of the Year Award during the organization’s 42nd Annual Charity & Scholarship Benefit. The event will be held at City Club, 555 South Flower Street, Downtown Los Angeles.
This year’s theme, “The Black Family: Strength and Unity through Health and Mental Well-Being,” reflects the core values of the ABWP. Congresswoman Sydney Kamlager-Dove (California’s 37th Congressional District) will present the award to Mayor Bass in recognition of her outstanding career journey and significant legislative contributions to healthcare, as well as her ongoing efforts to address a critical social determinant of health – housing insecurity within the City of Los Angeles.
The event will also include Lifetime Achievement Award recognitions for prominent healthcare figures, including Dr. Carol J. Bennett, the first Black woman Urologist in the United States, and Dr. Javette C. Orgain, the first Black woman President of the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) and former National Medical Association President.
To promote diversity in healthcare and address the current healthcare worker shortage, thirteen Black/African-American women medical students will be awarded the Association of Black Women Physicians’ Rebecca Lee Crumpler Scholarship, named after the first Black woman to receive a medical degree in the U.S., along with other scholarship awards.
We are grateful for the generous support of this year’s event sponsors, including the California Healthcare Foundation, Anthem Blue Cross, Charles R. Drew University School of Medicine, California Wellness Foundation, UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine, Kaiser School of Medicine, and Keck USC School of Medicine, among others.
About ABWP: The Association of Black Women Physicians (ABWP) is dedicated to promoting the health and well-being of all communities by advocating for health equity and cultivating the next generation of healthcare leaders.
The Association of Black Women Physicians (ABWP) was founded in 1982. Almost 50 African-American women physicians met to share their experiences and to discuss career development at the first meeting held in the recreation room of Dr. Jessie Sherrod’s home. The need for such an organization was abundantly clear, and the founders of our organization were women who passionately worked together for the organization. Over the course of a few months, members adopted the official name, transformed their goals into a mission statement, established Bylaws, and began actively engaging in organized community service programs and philanthropic endeavors.
Over the past 40 years, ABWP has grown to represent African-American women physicians, medical students, and undergraduate students throughout California, the United States and the Caribbean. Focused primarily in Southern California, the nonprofit organization has made an impact in local communities through health literacy programs, community outreach activities, mentoring, and scholarship awards.
For press inquiries and press passes for this event– contact Joy Parris-Jparris@richgirlproductions.com
For information about the event contact Sabra Diogioes-Waddy Email: sabra@splendidaffairsinc.com
