InterCare Community Health Network President and CEO Velma Hendershott has been honored with the 2022 Lifetime Achievement in Migrant Health Award by the National Association of Community Health Centers (NACHC). The award was given at the Conference for Agricultural Worker Health on May 2, in Denver, CO.
Velma has long been a leader in migrant and community health. As a child of migrant and seasonal farmworkers, she worked in the fields and learned about the difficulty farmworkers had trying to get health care for themselves and their families. Her parents settled in southwest Michigan and volunteered in clinics to provide services to farmworkers. In 1977 Velma joined what became InterCare, and in 1986 she was named CEO. Over the years, as well as running InterCare, she has been a passionate advocate for community health centers from the local level to state capitols, the U.S. Congress and the White House, including leadership roles with NACHC and the Michigan Primary Care Association.
At the presentation, Velma thanked many people and dedicated the award to her parents. “I think of my parents,” she said, “who instilled in all of us the value of service, compassion, a strong work ethic, the importance of education and a passion for helping others.”
“We take pride in recognizing colleagues who have done so much on behalf of our migrant and seasonal agricultural workers,” said Rachel Gonzales-Hanson, interim President and CEO of the National Association of Community Health Centers (NACHC). “Each in their own way has shown what it takes to make health care meaningful and responsive for this vital part of the nation’s workforce under extraordinary challenges. These honorees have lifted barriers to care and advanced equity during an unprecedented global pandemic. We celebrate their service, courage, and contributions to the Community Health Center Movement.”
Congratulations Velma!
