The Positive Community Magazine, Montclair, NJ
Adrian Council, Sr., the CEO of The Positive Community Magazine, is making waves in the world of community-focused media. Let me share some insights about this remarkable publication and its impact.
Founder, You're Not Alone Prostate Cancer Self Help Support Group
JERRY C. KNIGHT, is the Founder of “YOU’RE NOT ALONE PROSTATE CANCER SELF HELP SUPPORT GROUP” of Jackson, MS. He is a native “Mississippian,” an advocate for Prostate Cancer, Salesman, EMS Driver, and a former Small Business Owner. As a 5-year Prostate Cancer Survivor, Jerry regularly and passionately shares his cancer journey with male organizations, men’s church groups, and at targeted health and wellness events. He and his wife Connie currently reside in Ridgeland, MS. They are the proud parents of 7 children, 19 grandchildren, and 2 great grandchildren. Jerry aspires to effectively impact men on all levels, by raising awareness focusing primarily on the African American Community.
University North Carolina
Dr. Eric Wallen received his medical degree from the University of California at Los Angeles and completed his residency in urologic surgery at Stanford University. After residency, Dr. Wallen served as the Assistant Professor of Urology in the Department of Surgery at Dartmouth Medical School. He joined the Division of Urology at the University of North Carolina (UNC) in 2003 and was appointed Urology Program Director in 2011. He is now a professor in the UNC Department of Urology and continues in his role as Program Director.
Dr. Wallen has been named one of America’s Best Doctors multiple times. He specializes in urologic oncology and robotic surgery and is a member of the UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center.
He was instrumental in bringing robotic surgery to UNC and in the subsequent development of robust robotic surgical programs across several UNC surgical subspecialties. He is a founding member of the UNC Computer and Robotic Enhanced Surgery Center (CARES) Advisory Board.
As Residency Program Director, Dr. Wallen oversees the training of urologic resident physicians. In 2012, Dr. Wallen received the American Urological Association (AUA) Teacher of the Year award.
Dr. Wallen also developed the UNC Department of Urology’s mentoring program for residents and faculty. These educational achievements led to Dr. Wallen’s election to the Accreditation Council of Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) Urology Residency Review Committee in 2017. In 2019, he was appointed to the ACGME Milestones 2.0 project to update the standard assessment for urology residents. He was also appointed to the AUA Education Council to evaluate lifelong learning opportunities for urologists in practice.
Dr. Wallen obtained philanthropic support to establish the UNC Men’s Health Program and serve as the Executive Director of this collaborative, multi-departmental effort across UNC’s Medical School, the School of Public Health, the athletic department, and the North Carolina Translational and Clinical Institute (NC TraCS).
Dr. Wallen’s interest in global health has taken him to Cuba and China on multiple visiting professorships. He also developed the UNC Project Malawi, which established an elective rotation for urology residents to experience healthcare delivery in Malawi.
In addition to his clinical and educational roles, Dr. Wallen’s research interests include robotic surgery, outcomes, and translational research.
Representative G.A. Hardaway (D-TN) is a member of the Tennessee House of Representatives, representing District 93. He assumed office in 2006. His current term ends on November 5, 2024.
Hardaway is running for re-election to the Tennessee House of Representatives to represent District 93. He is on the ballot in the general election on November 5, 2024. He advanced from the Democratic primary on August 1, 2024.
Biography
Hardaway earned his B.S. in finance from DePaul University. He is a real estate investor.
State Rep. Dontavius Jarrells currently serves in his first term representing Ohio’s 25th House District, including Columbus, Clinton Township, and Mifflin Township.
Growing up in the Hough neighborhood of Cleveland, Rep. Jarrells saw firsthand the lack of affordable housing, safety, education, employment, and other essential services have on families. After nearly a decade fighting for disadvantaged and marginalized communities across Ohio, Rep. Jarrells is committed to advancing commonsense legislation to make Ohio a better place to live, work, go to school, start a business and raise a family. During his first term in elected office, Rep. Jarrells introduced legislation to increase Ohio’s minimum wage to $15/hr., eliminate discriminatory covenants from deeds during property transfers, remove derogatory language within the state’s code, and designate Columbus’ Poindexter Village as an official Ohio Historical site.
Patient Advocate Foundation (PAF)
Ms. Shonta Chambers transitioned back to the non-profit sector in 2014 by joining PAF. She leads the development and execution of strategic initiatives to expand PAF’s approach to achieve health equity through community and national level partnership engagement and mobilization. These initiatives are designed to link limited income communities to resources to abate financial, logistical and social access to care barriers. She brings to this role nearly 20 years of non-profit and public sector middle and senior level experience that spans public health, women’s health and behavioral health.
Additionally, she serves as the Principal Investigator on record as part of DP13-1314 CDC’s National Networks to Reduce Cancer and Tobacco Related Disparities Cooperative Agreement. In this role, she administers the SelfMade Health Network a national network focused on reducing cancer and tobacco related disparities among populations with low socio-economic characteristics.
Shonta enjoys mentoring young women, golf, and watching her sons play baseball.