OCAPICA'S EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR MARY ANNE FOO RECEIVES THE 2008 CHRIS JENKINS AWARD

(Garden Grove, CA) February 26, 2009 – The Orange County Asian and Pacific Islander Community Alliance (OCAPICA) is proud to announce that Executive Director Mary Anne Foo, has received the 2008 Chris Jenkins Award. Created in 2001, the esteemed Chris Jenkins Award was initiated by the Asian American Network for Cancer Awareness, Research and Training (AANCART) to honor Chris Jenkins's efforts for cancer control and education work in community-oriented cancer prevention in the Asian American and Pacific Islander community. AANCART's mission is to reduce cancer health disparities by engaging in cancer awareness and education and conducting cancer control and prevention training and research by, for, and with Asian Americans.

As a recipient of this prestigious award, Mary Anne Foo is being recognized as an individual who has made significant accomplishments in cancer prevention and control efforts for the Asian and Pacific Islander community. Foo is the founding Executive Director at OCAPICA, a 12-year old agency based in Garden Grove, California. In her role as a community leader serving the Asian American and Pacific Islander community, Foo has broken significant barriers to health access, education, and research for her community. Her efforts at OCAPICA have included the designation of OCAPICA as a national Center of Excellence to Eliminate Disparities (CEED) in breast and cervical cancer, the inclusion of a breast cancer and cervical cancer community-based participatory research program, and overall partnering in programs to end health disparities amongst all communities.

"We are so proud of her recognition," said Dr. Sora Park Tanjasiri, 2007 Chris Jenkins Recipient. Dr. Tanjasiri is a professor at Cal State Fullerton and received the award as the Principal Investigator of Weaving an Islander Network for Cancer Awareness, Research and Training (WINCART) based at CSUF.

Over the 12-month period immediately after receiving the award, the recipient will be responsible for providing technical assistance or lecturing on cancer prevention and control in the U.S.; presenting the Christopher N.H. Jenkins Cancer Control Lecture; and preparing recommendations for enhancing cancer prevention and control efforts targeting Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. As a recipient of the award, Foo will be joining an esteemed list of colleagues in eliminating cancer health disparities.

AANCART is in a cooperative agreement between the National Cancer Institute (NCI) and the University of California, Davis. It is the first-ever national cancer awareness research and training infrastructure intended to address Asian American concerns. OCAPICA is a non-profit organization located in Garden Grove, CA providing health, mental health, youth, education, and community services to Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in Orange County.



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The Orange County Asian and Pacific Islander Community Alliance
(OCAPICA) is dedicated to enhancing the health, social, and economic well-being of Asians and Pacific Islanders in Orange County, California.
Established in 1997, OCAPICA works to improve and expand the community's opportunities through service, education, advocacy, organizing and research. These community-driven activities seek to empower Asians and Pacific Islanders to define and control their lives and the future of their community.