We are thrilled to welcome three new Directors to GENYOUth’s Board, each of whom will be an enormous asset to our board and incredible stewards of our work: Claressa Shields, Dr. Selwyn Vickers, and Audrey Donahoe.
Learn a little bit about our new board members and some of their great work:
CLARESSA SHIELDS
Claressa is a two-time Olympic Gold Medalist boxer. Winning her first Olympic Gold Medal at the age of 17. Claressa is the most accomplished amateur boxer in U.S. history – male or female. Shields’ boxing gloves are enshrined at the International Boxing Hall of Fame. A trailblazer for women in the sport, she headlined the first women’s boxing main event for premium television in just her second professional fight. Growing up in poverty in Flint, Michigan, Claressa represents a beacon of hope for a working-class city that has struggled with violence and everyday essentials. A vocal advocate for social causes, including the ongoing water crisis in Flint, women’s rights, and campaigning against sexual assault, Shields was given the Key to the City in 2012. Among her many awards and accolades include Sports Woman of the Year (2016) by Women’s Sports Foundation, founded by Billie Jean King.
Many of you may remember Claressa from our 2018 Gala’s closing sports panel with Aaron Judge, Nate Burleson and Victor Cruz, where she shared her passion and story and inspired us all.
On February 26th we were invited to the Shields vs Hammer (the most anticipated fight in women’s boxing) press conference in New York City where Claressa’s new role was announced. In addition, Claressa invited a local Fuel Up to Play 60 student Anaise, her Program Adviser, Jeanine, and her mom, Ana up on stage to commemorate the moment. Anaise had recently completed a project about her hero Claressa. Jeanine, from East Middle School in Brentwood, NY, is FUTP60 co-advisor with Jessie, whom you may also remember as a hero honored at our gala. Thank you Claressa for including us in this historic moment!
SELWYN M. VICKERS, M.D., FACS
Dr. Selwyn Vickers holds the James C. Lee, Jr. Endowed Chair, and serves as Senior Vice President of Medicine and Dean, at the University of Alabama School of Medicine at UAB (University of Alabama at Birmingham), one of the ten largest public academic medical centers and the third largest public hospital in the U.S.. He is a renowned surgeon, pancreatic cancer researcher, and pioneer in health-disparities research. Dr. Vickers is a member of the National Academy of Medicine (Institute of Medicine) and of the Johns Hopkins Society of Scholars, and has served on the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine Board of Trustees and Johns Hopkins University Board of Trustees.
Dr. Vickers will no doubt become an invaluable member of our board as we think about how we approach food insecurity, overweight and obesity issues, and how we measure the health outcomes of our work and the many ways in which we can engage more health leaders and new partners in communities across the country.
AUDREY DONAHOE
Audrey Donahoe is a dairy farmer from upstate New York who was appointed Chairwoman of the National Dairy Council last year, one of our founding partners. She is a remarkable woman with an incredible passion for making a difference in the lives of this next generation and could not be a better representative of the 40,000 dairy farmers who helped create GENYOUth.
She and her husband Jeff, own and operate ATRASS Farm in upstate New York. Jeff and Audrey have six children and eight grandchildren. Audrey is a fifth-generation dairy farmer with one of her sons now on the farm, making it a sixth-generation farm. They crop 500 acres of land and care for 200 Holsteins and Brown Swiss cows, two of the best-known cattle breeds in the world. She is the Chairwoman of the National Dairy Council and she currently serves as a director, representing her fellow dairy farmers in the Northeast, on the American Dairy Association NorthEast Board of Directors as 1st Vice Chair, as well as at the national level on the Dairy Management, Inc. Board of Directors.