FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Press Contact:
Kathleen Pomento media@jlbalt.org (937) 831-6045

The Junior League of Baltimore Presents Community Awards at Annual Dinner
Women’s voluntarism organization recognizes leaders making a difference in the Baltimore community

Baltimore, MD (August 28, 2017) – On May 22, 2017, the Junior League of Baltimore presented their Woman of Distinction Award to Dr. Leana Wen and their Community Partner Award to Julie Ellsworth Cox. Dr. Wen is the Commissioner of Health for the City of Baltimore, and Julie Cox is the vice president of development for LifeBridge Health in Baltimore.

The Woman of Distinction award recognizes an outstanding female community leader in the Baltimore area who inspires others and has achieved success in her field. The review criteria includes breaking new grounds or old barriers; showing visions, creativity, and initiative, and being a leader or role model. In her role as health commissioner, Dr. Wen issued a blanket prescription for the opioid antidote, naloxone, to all Baltimore residents in order to mitigate opioid overdoses. Over the past two years, this action has saved over 800 lives. In March 2016, Dr. Wen was invited by the White House to speak on a panel with President Obama about Baltimore’s efforts to address addiction as a public health
crisis. Described as “a doctor on the front lines”, Dr. Wen is an inspiration to the Junior League of Baltimore. Under her direction, the Baltimore City Health Department continues to lead the country in health innovations with programs such as B’More for Healthy Babies, Vision for Baltimore, Safe Streets, and Healthy Baltimore 2020. To read more about Dr. Wen and the BCHD’s accomplishments, please visit https://health.baltimorecity.gov/node/35.

The Community Partner Award is awarded to a Baltimorean who has gone above and beyond to assist the Junior League. Julie was selected as the awardee because she is an extremely valued community partner to the JLB, and she has consistently given candid and helpful feedback to the voluntarism organization. She gives her perspective as a fundraiser with over two decades of experience, as a community representative of LifeBridge Health, and as a person whose career has focused on supporting, interacting with, and serving in the nonprofit and community based sectors. Julie has helped the JLB think broadly and strategically, attended events and activities, and served as an advocate for the organization’s service to the community. Julie has lent her time and talent to further the JLB mission and has helped to positively brand and hone the message and vision of the organization. To read more about Ms. Cox, please visit http://lifebridgehealth.giftplans.org/index.php?cID=235.

The Junior League of Baltimore congratulates the recipients and thanks them for making such an overarching and positive difference in our home community.

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About the Junior League of Baltimore
The Junior League of Baltimore (JLB) is an organization of women committed to promoting voluntarism, developing the potential of women, and improving the community through the effective action and leadership of trained volunteers. The JLB values the power of voluntarism, the diverse community in which we live, the talents, commitment, and contribution of our members, and our history of community impact and involvement. Since 1912, the JLB and its members have been improving the Baltimore community with service projects and impact-focused voluntarism.

For additional information visit www.jlbalt.org. You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.