NCOA’s Trailblazers in Aging Awards recognize individuals and organizations around the country who are working toward a just and caring society that allows all of us to age with dignity, purpose, and security.
The 2019 awards will be presented during NCOA’s Age+Action 2019 Conference at the Renaissance Hotel in Washington, DC, June 17-20, 2019.
Champion Award
This award recognizes members of Congress who have a demonstrated track record of leadership to improve the lives of older adults, enabling them to age with their best possible health and economic security. It is in honor of Claude Pepper, who was universally recognized as “the voice of senior citizens” throughout his five decades of service in the U.S. Congress.
Senator Bob Casey, Jr. (D-PA)
U.S. Senator Bob Casey fights every day for Pennsylvania families. He is a strong advocate for policies that improve the health care and early learning of children and policies that will raise wages for the middle class. Senator Casey serves on four committees, including the Senate Finance Committee and Senate HELP Committee. He is also the highest-ranking Democrat on the Special Committee on Aging, where his agenda is focused on policies that support seniors and individuals with disabilities. NCOA is honoring Senator Casey for leading the Senate fight to oppose harmful Medicaid cuts and caps while improving access to home and community-based services, and for his work to strengthen Medicare for vulnerable beneficiaries and modernize Older Americans Act programs to better serve those in need.
Senator Susan Collins (R-ME)
First elected in 1996, Senator Collins has earned a national reputation as an effective legislator who works across party lines to seek consensus on our nation’s most important issues. For the past six consecutive years, she has ranked as the most bipartisan member of the U.S. Senate by the Lugar Center and Georgetown University. Senator Collins ranks twelfth in Senate seniority and is the most senior Republican woman. She chairs the Senate Aging Committee and the Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development Appropriations Subcommittee. NCOA is honoring Senator Collins for championing critical issues such as Alzheimer’s disease, falls prevention, diabetes, and protecting Medicaid.
Lifetime Achievement Award
This award recognizes an individual who has had a lifelong career of outstanding service to older adults. It is in honor of Ollie Randall, a pioneer in the field of aging who was the driving force behind the New York State Office on Aging and the nation’s first senior center and was co-founder of both NCOA and LeadingAge.
Kenneth H. Cooper, MD, MPH
Dr. Kenneth Cooper, preventive medicine pioneer and “father of aerobics,” introduced the concept of exercising in pursuit of good health when he launched the worldwide phenomenon Aerobics in 1968—his first of 19 books on health and fitness. He is founder and chairman of the renowned Cooper Aerobics Center in Dallas, the home of six health and wellness companies, and the nonprofit, The Cooper Institute. At age 88, he is still practicing medicine daily at Cooper Clinic. NCOA is honoring Dr. Cooper for his lifetime commitment to elevating the importance of aerobic exercise, which is a foundational element of healthy aging.
Jennie Chin Hansen
For almost 25 years, Jennie Chin Hansen was an executive at On Lok, a prototype for the 1997 federal law that incorporated the Program for All Inclusive Care to the Elderly (PACE) into Medicare and Medicaid that now operates in 33 states. For six years, she was CEO of the American Geriatrics Society, and she also served as President of AARP during the passage of the Affordable Care Act. A seasoned health care leader, she currently serves on the boards of the Institute for Healthcare Improvement, the Dignity Health System, the SCAN Plan, and the SCAN Foundation. NCOA is honoring Hansen for her lifetime of service to older adults, especially those who are struggling.
Change Agent Award
This award recognizes an individual or organization working to ensure that every person—regardless of race, income, or background—has the resources to age well. It is in honor of Frankie Freeman, a civil rights attorney and former NCOA Board member who was the first woman appointed to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights.
Michael Adams
Michael Adams is CEO of SAGE (Advocacy and Services for LGBT Elders), the world’s largest and oldest organization dedicated to improving the lives of LGBT older people. Founded in 1978 and headquartered in New York City, SAGE is a national organization that offers supportive services and consumer resources to LGBT older people and their caregivers. SAGE also advocates for public policy changes that address the needs of LGBT elders and provides education and technical assistance for aging providers and LGBT community organizations. NCOA is honoring Adams for his outstanding leadership in significantly growing SAGE’s influence, programming, and reach.
Martha B. Peláez
Martha B. Peláez is an international consultant on aging and health with more than 35 years of experience working in the field of gerontology. She has been a tireless advocate and innovator, promoting evidence-based solutions that improve the lives of Hispanic older adults, international public health programs (especially in the Americas), and groundbreaking regional collaboratives in South Florida. NCOA is honoring Peláez for her passion in advocating to improve health and quality of life for older adults of diverse backgrounds and ethnicities.
Innovator Award
This award recognizes an individual or organization that has created innovative solutions to improve the health and economic security of older adults in the community. It is in honor of Jack Ossofsky, a former NCOA president who launched numerous successful programs and promoted the true promises of an aging society.
Healthy Living Center of Excellence
Foreseeing the need for collaborative approaches to evidence-based program sustainability, Elder Services of the Merrimack Valley developed the Healthy Living Center of Excellence (HLCE) in 2013. Today, HLCE serves as the “hub” for a Massachusetts-wide network delivering chronic disease self-management, falls prevention, behavioral health, and family caregiver and nutrition programs, all with a goal of supporting older adults and adults with disabilities in proactively managing their health. NCOA is honoring HLCE because it is an important model of successful partnerships between health care and aging services to address the social and behavioral determinants of healthy aging.
Public Private Partnership Award
This award recognizes organizations that have established powerful partnerships that build bridges between the public and private sectors to empower every person to age well. It is in honor of Arthur Flemming, Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare under President Eisenhower, U.S. Commissioner on Aging under President Nixon, recipient of two Presidential Medals of Freedom, and a tireless advocate for older adults.
Anthem, Inc.
Anthem is a leading health benefits company dedicated to improving lives and communities and making health care simpler. Through its affiliated companies, Anthem serves more than 78 million people, including over 40 million within its family of health plans. Anthem aims to be the most innovative, valuable, and inclusive partner. NCOA is honoring Anthem because of its commitment to serving older adults, its innovative approaches to addressing social and behavioral determinants of health, and its work preparing individuals to live long, healthy lives.
The Retirement Research Foundation
The Retirement Research Foundation (RRF) is devoted exclusively to improving the quality of life for our nation’s older adults, especially those who are vulnerable due to advanced age, economic disadvantage, or disparity related to race and ethnicity. Since its endowment by the late John D. MacArthur in 1978, RRF has awarded more than $200 million in grants. RRF fulfills its mission through grantmaking programs, which support innovative advocacy, direct service, professional education and training, and research projects that benefit older Americans. NCOA is honoring RRF for its long-standing and steadfast commitment to supporting innovative solutions that address the needs of low-income older adults and frail elders who are struggling to remain in their communities.
NISC Founders Award
This award recognizes exemplary and long-standing service to the senior center field. It is in honor of the nine founders of NCOA’s National Institute of Senior Centers.
Carol Reagan
Carol Reagan has worked with senior centers for 40 years. She is Executive Director of the Palatine Township Senior Citizens Council, which operates the Palatine Township Senior Center in Palatine, IL. Under her direction, PTSCC has been accredited three times by NCOA’s National Institute of Senior Centers (NISC), added satellite offices, expanded programming, and more than doubled its budget. Reagan is a past NISC Chair, a NISC Accreditation Board Member, and a NISC leader since 2002. NCOA is honoring her for her outstanding leadership for senior centers nationwide.
NCOA Distinguished Service Award
This award recognizes NCOA employees and volunteers who have made major contributions to NCOA’s mission and social impact. It is in honor of Geneva Mathiasen, NCOA’s first executive director who spent her career building the foundation for a lasting organization.
Jay Greenberg
Over the last four plus decades, Jay Greenberg has played leadership roles in university, not-for-profit, for-profit start-ups, and publicly traded company settings. For the last 20 years, he has had various leadership positions at NCOA, including CEO of NCOA Services. Prior to joining NCOA, he was President of one of United Healthcare’s wholly owned business units, and he co-founded two successful entrepreneurial health companies. NCOA is honoring Greenberg for his substantial contributions to NCOA’s work in the areas of economic security, health, and long-term care, as well as for his passion for social enterprises and partnerships with the private sector that make markets work better for seniors.
Lynn Fields Harris
Until June 2018, Lynn Fields Harris served for 15 years as Executive Director of Center in the Park, a nationally accredited senior community center and social services agency in Philadelphia. Through her leadership, the center was transformed into a wellness center and was recognized as a model for the implementation of innovative programming and of community-based/academic participatory research initiatives with diverse populations. Center in the Park was a key community partner for several NCOA initiatives, and she has served in numerous volunteer leadership roles, including as an NCOA Board member and Chair of NCOA’s National Institute of Senior Centers. NCOA is honoring Harris for her incredible commitment to furthering NCOA’s mission and social impact.
Nancy Whitelaw
Nancy Whitelaw was NCOA’s Senior Vice President for Health and founding Director of NCOA’s Center for Healthy Aging, where she led a national movement to foster adoption of evidence-based programming by community agencies. Prior to joining NCOA in 1999, Dr. Whitelaw served as Associate Director of the Center for Health System Studies at the Henry Ford Health System, overseeing research and training projects on care coordination and geriatric team care. During 2012, she served as President of the Gerontological Society of America. NCOA is honoring Whitelaw for improving the health and well-being of older adults by fostering broad-based collaborations among practitioners, academics, and policymakers across health care, public health, and community services.
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