President Clinton to Receive Physicians for Peace Humanitarian Award

Award Part of Physicians for Peace October 2 Gala Event

NORFOLK, VA (08/18/2010)(readMedia)-- Physicians for Peace has announced that President Bill Clinton, founder of the William J. Clinton Foundation and 42nd President of the United States, will be the recipient of the 2010 Charles E. Horton Award for Humanitarian Service via video. President Clinton will be recognized on October 2, 2010, during the Physicians for Peace annual gala reception in Virginia Beach. Physicians for Peace mobilizes healthcare educators to take their teaching skills to developing countries to improve the quality of health care for disadvantaged populations.

According to the Physicians for Peace Chairman of the Board, Buzz Heidt, who made the announcement, "The award is named in honor of our founder, distinguished humanitarian Dr. Charles E. Horton, Sr. It is given annually to an individual for his or her extraordinary and selfless humanitarian service to alleviate human suffering, particularly in low-income societies. The President has demonstrated time and time again his personal commitment to helping others throughout his career, but most dramatically with his relief and recovery efforts following the tsunami in the Indian Ocean, in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, and now, in the aftermath of the earthquake in Haiti."

Since 2001, President Clinton has dedicated himself to philanthropy and continued public service through the William J. Clinton Foundation, which is focused on finding practical and measurable solutions to address pressing challenges at home and abroad.

In addition to his Foundation work, building on his longstanding commitment to Haiti as President and through his Foundation, President Clinton was named U.N. Special Envoy for Haiti in 2009. In the aftermath of the earthquake in Haiti, President Obama asked President Clinton and President George W. Bush to raise funds for immediate, high-impact relief and long-term recovery efforts to help those who are most in need of assistance. In response, the two Presidents established the Clinton Bush Haiti Fund (CBHF) to respond to unmet needs in the country, foster economic opportunity, improve the quality of life over the long term for those affected, and assist the people of Haiti as they rebuild their lives and "build back better." Most recently, he was named by President Préval the co-chair – along with Haitian Prime Minister Jean-Max Bellerive – of the Interim Haiti Reconstruction Commission (IHRC)

The President joins a distinguished list of previous winners of the Horton Award. They include Professor Jeff Sachs, noted economist and ardent advocate for those living in poverty; former Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, MD, an activist for using medicine as "a currency for peace" to improve the quality of life for vulnerable populations; and the ONE Campaign, a grassroots campaign and advocacy organization co-founded by Bono, that is committed to the fight against extreme poverty and preventable disease, particularly in Africa.

ABOUT PHYSICIANS FOR PEACE

Physicians for Peace is an international nonprofit organization that mobilizes volunteer healthcare professionals to assist developing nations with unmet medical needs and scarce resources. Through effective, hands-on medical education and training, clinical care and donated medical supplies, Physicians for Peace develops long-term, sustainable, replicable, and evidence-based programs to help partner nations build medical capability and capacity to help themselves. Since 1989, volunteers for the 501(c) (3) nonprofit organization have conducted medical missions in over 60 countries.

With its headquarters in Norfolk, Va., Physicians for Peace has programs in 22 countries and offices in Manila, the Philippines and Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. In 2009, the organization celebrated its 20th Anniversary.

For more information, go to: www.physiciansforpeace.org

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