PANELISTS
Learn more about the panelists and moderators to hear in their own words why this webinar is so significant:
Emily Brown
Emily Brown is the Founder and CEO of Food Equality Initiative and a food allergy mother.
What is the significance of this webinar?
“The significance of the For the Health webinar is to start an open dialogue on racial and economic disparities in food allergy. It is my hope that words will move to action and we will see real lasting changes.”
Dr. Lakiea Wright-Bello, M.D.
Dr. Lakiea Wright-Bello, M.D. is a board-certified allergist and Medical Director at ThermoFisher Scientific.
What is your goal participating in this webinar?
“My goal for participating in the webinar is to increase awareness about food allergy disparities. As a physician, I am committed to eliminating health disparities through education and finding solutions to increase access to high quality care for patients from underserved communities.”
Denise Woodard
Denise Woodard is the Founder and CEO of Partake Foods and the mother of a child with multiple food allergies.
Why is this webinar significant to the food allergy community?
“Food allergies disproportionately affect Black children, and as a mom, business owner, and Black woman, I feel a responsibility to use my business, platform, and experiences to support health equity and to reduce the racial disparities that affect Black people with food allergies.”
Thomas Silvera
Thomas Silvera is President at Elijah-Alavi Foundation Inc, a Surgical Technician and a food allergy father.
What is your goal participating in this webinar?
“We need people watching to hear from people like myself and my wife, who grew up in these underserved communities faced with so much scarcity and disparity in health and low socioeconomic status. Let’s figure out a way to fix and eliminate the disparity by providing more clarity to assist and better the community’s wellbeing.”
Dina Silvera
Dina Silvera is a mental health advocate and executive creative director at G.A.M.E., Vice President at Elijah-Alavi Foundation Inc., and a food allergy mother.
Why is it so important for people of all colors to view this webinar?
“We are all trying to find a cure, to teach people how to mitigate risk and trying to prevent someone from falling in harm’s way. If you don’t keep the momentum, people start to forget and we don’t want people to forget because the conversation has to be continuous.”
Javier Evelyn
Javier Evelyn is the Founder and CEO of Alerje, a founding team member at MedTec Color and personally manages multiple food allergies.
Why is it so important for people of all colors to view this webinar?
“I hope that the brands and companies that have recently shown interest in Black and Brown patient populations, especially those that haven’t displayed consistent interest in the past to “keep the same energy” 1 year from now, 5 years from now, etc. This isn’t just about a moment in America, this is about our lives.”
MODERATORS
Linsey Davis
Linsey Davis is a two-time Emmy Award winning correspondent for ABC News and successful children’s book author.
What is your goal participating in this webinar?
“We all have realized with this latest pandemic how black and brown communities can be disproportionately impacted by Covid 19. And while our DNA makeup as one human race is said to be 99.9 percent the same, that .1 percent difference can show up in many different ways and can be further exacerbated by socio economics and beyond. Enter food allergies. Whether it’s a lack of knowledge or accessible solutions, we need to bring about a great understanding to how allergies show up differently in different groups of people. I’m excited to explore, discuss and have enlightening dialogue.”
Karen Palmer
Karen Palmer is an ardent food allergy advocate, Certified Professional Coach and Operations Consultant and food allergy parent.
Why is this webinar significant to the food allergy community?
“This event is significant because it will provide participants with the opportunity to thoughtfully consider the unmet needs of communities of color within the food allergy community, and allow them to learn how they can support efforts to fulfill those needs in the future.”
