The 2024 Bernstein Event: Supporting WNC Recovery & Honoring Health Leadership
Foundation for Health Leadership & Innovation
Building leadership, shaping practice, affecting policy, and driving innovation through collaborative partnerships.
Each year, we look forward to the annual Bernstein Event, where we come together to celebrate North Carolina's dedicated public health leaders. This year, we were especially reminded of the importance of our statewide network and the community-based work we support. The impact of Hurricane Helene, which has devastated many parts of Western North Carolina (WNC), extends far beyond the region, touching the lives of our partners and team members.
In the wake of this catastrophic event, the 2024 Bernstein Event centered around support and recovery efforts, uniting to help affected communities rebuild and heal. As part of our response, our NC Rural Health Association program launched a county-by-county resource guide , spotlighting community-based organizations working on the ground to provide critical assistance.
Community-based organizations work to ensure that people who live and work in their local areas drive their own solutions. It is critical to support their efforts so that communities can continue to carve their own paths to recovery in the months and years ahead.
With this resource, our goal is twofold: 1) to help anyone who is seeking direct services in their county access them more quickly, and 2) to help anyone who would like to contribute easily find community-based organizations working on the ground in every impacted county.
This year's event took place on Wednesday, October 2, and featured inspiring presentations from our keynote speakers and 2024 awardees and a ceremony for our graduating class of Bernstein Fellows. Read on for highlights and video clips from the evening.
Hurricane Helene Response & Recovery Efforts
To kick off the night, we heard from state and federal health leaders about the response to Hurricane Helene. NC Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) Secretary Kody Kinsley provided a powerful update on recovery efforts, emphasizing the state's commitment to the long road ahead.
"This is something that is not going to be done in a few days. It's not going to be done in a few weeks. This is an entirely different trajectory for the health and well-being of the region, and our state will and must respond to it in a different way." — NCDHHS Secretary Kody Kinsley
As of October 2, in partnership with local organizations and government agencies, the state's response that has prioritized restoring essential services included:
During his speech, Secretary Kinsley also highlighted Medicaid Expansion's role in ensuring that more North Carolinians can access health services as they navigate the aftermath of the catastrophic storm.
Following Secretary Kinsley's remarks, we heard from US Health and Human Services Regional Secretary Antrell Tyson, Esq. , who discussed federal support for the region and the need to advance health equity.
"Together we can prepare for future challenges to ensure that our systems are not only robust but also adaptable to the ever-changing landscape of public health." — HHS Regional Director Antrell Tyson, Esq.
Regional Secretary Tyson underscored the essential importance of local, state, and federal partnerships in the disaster response. According to FEMA, as of October 24, 2024, the response in North Carolina has included:
As we have seen, these unique partnerships have already been instrumental, and they will remain vital moving forward.
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Celebrating Our Bernstein Fellows
In addition to hearing updates about the hurricane response efforts, this year's event honored our graduating 2022-2024 class of Bernstein Fellows . Fellowship Director Hugh Tilson, JD, MPH, invited each of the seven fellows to the stage and recognized their work.
The fellowship is an intensive two-year program during which fellows gain valuable insights into the needs of rural and underserved communities and develop the necessary skills to drive meaningful change.
"I think what really just comes through is carrying on the legacy of Jim Bernstein. Instead of making decisions for patients and folks in rural communities, he was making decisions with, so that thread has been carried through the Fellowship." — Rachael Pennell, MSW, LCSW
One of the seven graduating fellows, Ashley Jarrett, BSN, RN, could not attend in person due to supporting Hurricane Helene response efforts in Burke County, where she serves as the Assistant Health Director at Burke County Public Health.
We are incredibly proud of our fellows and look forward to seeing what they do next as they continue leading us all toward a healthier North Carolina!
Honoring Our 2024 Awardees
We also recognized our 2024 awardees, who exemplify FHLI's mission to expand health access and equity across our state. Dr. Joseph Bell received the FHLI Community Achievement Award , and Dr. Barbara Pullen-Smith received the Jim Bernstein Community Health Career Achievement Award . Their contributions are a testament to the powerful impact of compassion, commitment, and collaborative leadership.
During her award acceptance speech, Dr. Pullen-Smith spoke about her 35+ year career in public health. As the founding director of the NC Office of Minority Health and Health Disparities, she collaborated with Jim Bernstein and spoke fondly of their work together. She said they shared a belief that health care is a right, not a privilege.
"We both worked in communities to make sure that we helped people in the community to learn how to be their own advocates and to be their own spokespersons and to learn how to work the systems so that they could be the leaders in the community." — Dr. Barbara Pullen-Smith
Among countless accomplishments, Dr. Pullen-Smith developed and implemented a statewide Cultural Diversity Training Initiative and North Carolina’s first Interpreter Services Training Initiative for bilingual individuals working in local public health and other health services agencies. At the national level, she served as the past president of the National Association of State Offices of Minority Health and as a contributor to the National Partnership for Action to End Health Disparities.
Dr. Bell is the first Lumbee pediatrician and the first Native American pediatrician in North Carolina. He worked four years in tribal health and the Indian Health Service in Oklahoma and 24 years on the Catawba Reservation in Rock Hill, South Carolina. During his award acceptance speech, he reflected on his childhood experience and lifelong commitment to serving Native children and communities.
"I grew up right beside our grandfather's tobacco farm in the little Native community of Pembroke, NC, Robson County. And I ended up on the campus of UNC at age 18. And at that age, there were only about two things I really knew. Number one was this was the color of my skin, and I might as well be proud of that. And number two that I had ancestors who had toiled and sweated and bled and died for me to have the opportunity to be on the campus as a freshman. And I made a vow to myself that I would not waste that and I would devote my life to serving Native communities." — Dr. Joseph Bell
Dr. Bell is a past president and current member of the Association of American Indian Physicians, the North Carolina American Indian Health Board, and the UNC Alumni Committee on Racial and Ethnic Diversity. He currently serves as the managing partner for Children’s Health of Carolina, which has pediatric clinics in Cumberland, Hoke, and Robeson County. He has also been a general pediatrician in their Pembroke clinic for 26 years.
We are deeply grateful for the innovative leadership and remarkable contributions of our two 2024 awardees. Learn more about their accomplishments .
Continue Supporting Community-Driven Care in NC
As recovery efforts continue after Hurricane Helene, FHLI remains dedicated to supporting community-based organizations across Western North Carolina (WNC) and collaborating with our statewide partners, with a special focus on rural and underserved areas.
We are grateful for your commitment to improving health access and equity for every North Carolinian and hope you stay connected and engaged with us. Explore our Hurricane Helene Relief county map to find services and support community-driven solutions today!
For more, check out our two latest blog posts: