Goodmons Honored with National Award for HIV & AIDS Awareness Work
Barbara (left) & Jim Goodmon |
CBC President & CEO Jim Goodmon and his wife, A.J. Fletcher Foundation President Barbara Goodmon, recently received an honor for their efforts to reduce the burden of HIV and AIDS in minority communities. The National Minority Quality Forum and the Congressional Black Caucus in cooperation with the Congressional Black Health Braintrust presented the Goodmons with the 2008 Health Promotions and Disease Prevention Award.
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View the Get Real, Get Tested PSA created by FOX 50 featuring Dr. Leah Devlin, State Health Director.
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The presentation took place as part of the National Minority Quality Forum’s Annual Leadership Summit in recognition of National Minority Health Month. The Booker T. Washington Awards Luncheon occurred on Monday, April 14th at the Ritz Carlton in Washington, DC.
The Goodmons have worked for HIV & AIDS awareness and support in several ways. Over the past few years, CBC’s Durham-based television station FOX 50 has worked hand in hand with Jim Goodmon and the Division of Public Health on North Carolina’s Get Real, Get Test HIV education and testing program.
NC’s Get Real, Get Tested reached more than 3 million viewers in the first year. More than 2,000 people were tested at Get Real, Get Tested events in 2006 and 2007. The Center for Disease Control estimates that 1.2 million people in the United States have HIV, but a quarter of that number do not know they are infected. According to the CDC, 50 to 70 percent of new sexually transmitted HIV infections are caused by persons who are unaware they are infected.
WRAL-TV, CBC’s Raleigh television station, promotes the Works of Heart Auction benefiting the Alliance of AIDS service each year.
The National Minority Quality Forum’s Leadership Summit brings together congressional leaders, physicians, government officials, patient advocates, industry representatives, and other critical stakeholders to galvanize understanding of and support for integrated solutions to eliminate health disparities in priority populations.
The National Minority Quality Forum is a research and educational organization dedicated to ensuring that high-risk racial and ethnic populations and communities receive optimal health care.
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FOX 50 and Get Real, Get Tested
In 2006, the Division of Public Health (DPH) came up with an idea to start promoting and encouraging HIV testing, but they needed a way to promote the idea statewide.
 “We started working with [Account Executive] Sylvia Lanier and the FOX 50 team to put together a great campaign,” said Get Real Get Tested Campaign Coordinator Holly Watkins Crane.
The first part of the campaign focused on PSAs which were created by FOX 50 Producer Karen Johnson. The spots went on the air in November 2006 and have been running ever since. The spots get prime-time placement on the air and also run on the FOX 50 website.
FOX 50 has been a partner with the DPH for a long time, first working together in 2004 when doing an abstinence campaign called “Not Me Not Now.”
“Jim & Barbara [Goodmon] have been very supportive of anything we’ve done,” said Lanier. “Tommy [Schenck, FOX 50 VP & GM] took the [Get Real Get Tested] concept to Jim Goodmon and Jim gave it his blessing.”
“Jim has really been a part of this initiative from day one,” continued Lanier. “He really gave us the support and the resources to make it happen.”
When the DPH put together an HIV/AIDS testing event and press conference at the NC General Assembly for National HIV Testing Day in June 2007, both Goodmons agreed not only to appear, but Jim spoke and both got tested.
“One of the things we love about Jim and Barbara is they aren’t afraid of so-called controversial issues,” said Crane Watkins. “A lot of North Carolinians are infected by this disease and we need to face this.”
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