Neighbor News
Hudson Valley Gateway Chamber Honors HRHCare
HRHCare Executive Vice President and Director of Hispanic Health receive awards from the Hudson Valley Gateway Chamber of Commerce.
HRHCare Community Health, a nonprofit system of Federally Qualified Health Centers offering a range of medical services for underserved communities throughout the Hudson Valley and Long Island, is pleased to announce that HRHCare Founding Mother and Executive Vice President of Community Development the Rev. Jeannette Phillips and Director of Hispanic Health Wilfredo Morel were recently honored by the Hudson Valley Gateway Chamber of Commerce. The Annual Chamber Awards ceremony recognizes those who have made a significant and lasting contribution to their local community.
Receiving the Quality of Life Award on behalf of HRHCare, the Rev. Jeannette Phillips was recognized for her significant committment to the Peekskill community and the dedication of HRHCare to cultivate collaborations and partnerships to facilitate community involvement. The sole surviving ”Founding Mother” of HRHCare, Rev. Phillips along with Mary Woods, Pearl Woods and Willie Mae Jackson fought hard to establish the Peekskill Area Ambulatory Health Center in what had been an old department store on Main Street to address the lack of affordable and accessible health care in the area. Over the past 40 years she has played an instrumental role in helping that one site grow into a network of 26 Community Health Centers across a 10 county region of the Hudson Valley and Long Island.
Receiving the Volunteer of the Year Award, Wilfredo Morel was honored for his critical role with the Chamber and the generous giving of his time for the betterment of the community. Giving countless hours of volunteerism to improve the lives of the Hispanic residents of Peekskill, Mr. Morel also founded the Comite Latino business group which nows falls under the umbrella of the Chamber. He was recently appointed to the task force to end the AIDS epidemic in New York by Governor Cuomo and serves as Chairman of the Westchester Department of Health AIDS Council. Mr. Morel has also dedicated his time to enriching the lives of community members through art, including multiple scholarships for Peekskill area children to attend summer arts programs.
