First Ladies' Health Initiative

Many of us from the Generation X and Y era can remember a time when Black churches used to do everything for the community: clothing drives, visit the sick, feed the homeless, help with careers, give scholarships, etc. But over the past couple of decades, many have steered away from the church, citing that they are out of touch or “doesn’t speak” to their needs. Well, the First Ladies across the country have decided to step up to that challenge and bring to life what you’ve always heard in church

With a focus on the diseases that affect African Americans most (heart disease, colon cancer, diabetes, etc) and an intent raising awareness on HIV/AIDS, African-American pastors’ wives across the country report making major inroads in encouraging people to get life-saving screenings.

Just recently, the First Ladies Health Initiative succeeded in getting more than 1,200 community residents to get free screenings for HIV in a single day at 70 churches in Chicago and Northwest Indiana at its Health Day this year — a record for faith-based organizations.

Since launching in Chicago in 2008, the nonprofit initiative’s Walgreens-sponsored First Ladies Health Days, held at their churches annually, have enabled more than 200,000 individuals to get an array of free health screenings, including for HIV/AIDS.

“What began as a pilot program combating HIV/AIDS has now expanded to also include a focus on other major illnesses that rob lives in our communities, including cardiovascular disease, diabetes, hypertension, hepatitis C, cancer and other illnesses,” Executive Director of the initiative, Tracy Alston, said.

The First Ladies Health Initiative has grown to comprise 152 pastors’ wives, also known as First Ladies, across denominations at chapters in Northwest Indiana, Los Angeles and Orange County, CA, Cincinnati, OH, in addition to Chicago.

Because of its influence, the First Ladies Health Initiative has been selected by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to participate in a national HIV campaign.

“I think the philanthropic partnership component helped encourage more people to get tested,” Alston said. “People felt compelled to do this, not only to be proactive about their health, but to also help others across the globe in South Africa.”

For every HIV test administered during the First Ladies Health Days in Los Angeles and Orange County, CA. next year,…

…bioLytical Laboratories will donate a free test to the foundation. It has committed to a minimum of 1,000 tests.

“We’re hopeful that the opportunity to help others while also helping themselves will be a strong motivator for Californians to get HIV tested as it was at our Health Day in Chicago and Northwest Indiana,” Alston said.

United for healthier communities, the initiative targets illnesses that disproportionately affect African-Americans and Hispanics and encourages them to be proactive about their health.

“We’ve come a long ways since we began in 2008,” Alston said. “We recognized then that one of the most urgent health needs was and still is the devastating spread of HIV/AIDS in communities of color.”

For more on the First Ladies Health Initiative and find out how to get your church involved, click here.