This year marks the 42nd anniversary of Johns Hopkins Medicine’s Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Commemoration, a time to honor King’s remarkable accomplishments and to celebrate Johns Hopkins community members who embody his commitment to making a difference for all humanity.

Below are the recipients of the 2023 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Award for Community Service, as well as the 2024 Dr. Levi Watkins Jr. Ideals Award, named for the first Black chief resident of cardiac surgery at The Johns Hopkins Hospital. Watkins, who implanted the first automatic heart defibrillator in a patient, founded the annual King commemoration in 1982 to honor the man who was his pastor and mentor while he grew up in segregated Montgomery, Alabama.

Award recipients will be honored during the commemoration on Friday, Jan. 12, noon to 1:30 p.m., in the Chevy Chase Auditorium on the East Baltimore campus. Noted educator, humanitarian and former NASA astronaut Mae Jemison will be the keynote speaker.

Winners of the 2023 Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Award for Community Service

Maxwell Duah
Postdoctoral Research Fellow
Cancer and Blood Disorders Institute
Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital

Community service has always been a part of Maxwell Duah’s life. In his native Ghana, he worked with local health care practitioners to deliver health screenings and educational materials about cancer to underserved populations. After receiving a scholarship to earn his doctorate in hematology in China, he dedicated weekends there to helping provide food, clothing and basic supplies to orphanage homes and rural communities.

Now a postdoctoral fellow at the Cancer and Blood Disorders Institute at Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital, Duah volunteers on Saturdays at Positive Impact Worldwide, an organization that addresses childhood hunger in St. Petersburg, Florida.

“To me, the most profound way to manifest the love of God is through community service,” says Duah, who helps assemble and distribute packages of food. “I exemplify this by serving people.”

His commitment extends beyond the distribution center. After volunteering from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., Duah and his wife drive around St. Petersburg to deliver leftover food and drinks to individuals experiencing homelessness.

The remarkable resilience and strength of the people Duah encounters through Positive Impact resonate with him.

“Their stories of hope and determination in the face of adversity deeply inspire me,” he says. “It serves as a reminder that we all possess the capacity to overcome challenges with the support of a caring community.”

Marcelina Kubica
Medical Student
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine

Third-year medical student Marcelina Kubica has been volunteering several hours per week with the Johns Hopkins-based Refugee Health Partnership (RHP) since November 2021.

She’s currently the client outreach student lead at the program’s Johns Hopkins, Esperanza, Asylee Women Enterprise and Loyola (HEAL) Refugee Health and Asylum Collaborative, based at the Esperanza Center in Fell’s Point.

Kubica performs virtual work for clients at the border, and she conducts forensic medical evaluations in-person at the Esperanza Center for people displaced from their home countries. The evaluations include collecting and documenting health information that can be crucial for clients seeking legal and social support as they settle in the United States.

She also raises money through grants and bake sales, provides Spanish-language interpretation at the clinic and serves as a health navigator for Asylee Women Enterprise through an RHP program that helps people who are medically vulnerable and are seeking asylum in Baltimore. 

Raised in Ogden, Utah, by parents who moved from Poland to the United States when she was a baby, Kubica says she has always identified with the immigrant experience. As an undergraduate at Yale University, she volunteered with the student-run HAVEN Free Clinic, which serves people who are uninsured, including immigrants lacking permanent legal status.

“That’s where I got a spark for medicine,” Kubica says.

Kubica says she’s not sure yet if she’ll be a pediatrician, surgeon or other kind of doctor, but she does know she wants to continue to help people seeking homes in the United States. The work can be difficult and sad and frustrating, she says, but it is also tremendously rewarding.

She remembers an Asylee client who always dressed impeccably for appointments with Kubica — appointments that basically involved filling out Medicaid forms.

“It was clear that this was incredibly important to her,” Kubica says. “It was so wonderful when we heard that she did get the Medicaid.”

Sanjay Kubsad
Trainee
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine

For Sanjay Kubsad, a driving goal in life is to help make high quality education more accessible. Outside of his work as a research fellow in orthopaedic surgery at the Johns Hopkins Howard County Medical Center, Kubsad is a mentor at the Young Scientist Journal, an international student-run, peer-reviewed publication.

The journal has been formative for Kubsad, who first became involved as a budding young scientist himself. During high school, he was senior editor and then head of outreach, piloting a concept called Hubs to help students anywhere in the world assemble research-oriented science clubs.

“We’d provide all the materials and resources for the kids to run activities, and we’d connect them to local community members who could come in for talks and mentorship,” Kubsad says.

During his time with Hubs, 12 clubs launched in schools and at youth organizations in five countries. Today, the concept endures under the name reSTEM.

Kubsad’s commitment to education equality has also extended to younger learners. From 2017 to 2019, while earning a bachelor’s degree in neuroscience at the University of Washington, he served at Jumpstart, an AmeriCorps initiative, as a corps member and team leader in underserved Seattle-area preschools including the Refugee Women’s Alliance and El Centro de la Raza.

“Jumpstart works to bridge the kindergarten gap, helping kids in underserved preschools get better prepared to start school,” Kubsad says. “We led classrooms sessions a few times a week, focusing on literacy and emotional intelligence.”

Kubsad aims to complete his medical degree in 2025 at the University of Washington after completing his research fellowship at Johns Hopkins.

Shelly LaPrince
Director, Healthcare Economics
Johns Hopkins Health Plans

Shelly LaPrince found her community service role model close to home: her father. LaPrince watched her dad help people in the community while he worked full-time, raised a family and served in the military.

Her father’s example lit a fire in LaPrince that would continue for more than 20 years. She sees a need in the community, then works to fulfill it.

Through her work with local agencies, LaPrince mentored young girls and teens, offering advice on personal issues, academic participation and ways to build their confidence. “The level of fulfillment I received from helping others provided the motivation to continue giving back,” she says. Her work includes adopting families from local schools for the holidays, participating in reading programs for inner city youth and packing meals for elderly families.

LaPrince’s community service efforts turned to advocacy and finding her self-care voice when she faced a personal challenge while trying to conceive a child, navigating the health care system in the process.

As a result of her experience, she was inspired to support others also dealing with infertility. LaPrince is an enthusiastic advocate for treating others with fairness, helping people succeed and providing them with the information they need to make informed decisions.

She is currently making her mark on global advocacy as she fulfills another need: ensuring Jewish women of African descent are seen and heard in safe spaces. LaPrince is aware that without discovering her advocacy voice, her compassionate heart and her willingness to serve, her life would not be the same.

Nicole Pannullo
Ph.D. Student
Cellular and Molecular Medicine
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine

Nicole Pannullo, a doctoral student in cellular and molecular medicine, began volunteering with Equal Access in Science and Medicine shortly after it was created in 2019 and continues to lead the group’s advocacy for students with disabilities, chronic illnesses and mental health conditions.

She has raised thousands of dollars in grant money for the student-run organization, and has organized many social and educational events including a lecture series featuring scientists and clinicians with disabilities, and listening sessions with Johns Hopkins administrators and leaders.

During and after the COVID-19 pandemic, she pushed for recorded lectures, closed captioning and other ways to make learning more accessible. She is now helping to create a network that will connect trainees with alumni mentors who have similar disabilities and career interests.

Pannullo, who grew up on Long Island, New York, was born with moderate hearing loss and has worn hearing aids since preschool. In eighth grade, she was diagnosed with Usher syndrome type II, a genetic condition characterized by hearing loss at birth and progressive loss of peripheral and night vision starting in adolescence.

As an undergraduate at the Rochester Institute of Technology, Pannullo found a robust and supportive community of students who were deaf or hard of hearing. Her determination to create a similar infrastructure at Johns Hopkins only grew with the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic. That’s when she contacted fellow students Claire Bell and Anna Moyer, who have since graduated, about joining the advocacy group.

“We shouldn’t feel like we have to hide our disabilities,” Pannullo says. “People with disabilities should be celebrated as an underrepresented group that can bring different experiences to the table.”

James Peng
Intern, Johns Hopkins Howard County Medical Center
Student at Glenelg High School

James Peng’s journey from China to Howard County at age 11 fueled his passion for the medical field, particularly around oncology research. The Johns Hopkins Howard County Medical Center intern is learning valuable lessons that will help with his future in medicine.

Peng is diligently supported and guided by the continuing education team as they work to initiate and implement projects to foster nursing education. In addition to training Peng to learn new tools and encouraging him to share creative ideas, the staff challenged him to develop educational videos on peritoneal dialysis and setting bed alarms for patients at risk for falls.

Beyond his internship, Peng holds significant roles in various service organizations, such as Glenelg’s New Student Assistant Program, Asian Student Union, National Honor Society and Science National Honor Society. He also serves as the lieutenant governor of the largest student service organization in Howard County, the Key Club, which empowers hundreds of members to engage in meaningful community service initiatives.

With a dedication to helping people with cancer, Peng created informative medical brochures that educate patients about the potential benefits of immunotherapy treatments.

Looking ahead, Peng will be a research assistant at the Johns Hopkins Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, aiming to learn more about leukemia and cancer genetics. He has clear aspirations to continue contributing to the local and patient community, with the eventual goal of becoming a physician-scientist.

Jannette Pennywell
Program Coordinator
Risk Management
Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital

In 18 years at Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital, Jannette Pennywell has established herself as a person who regularly goes the extra mile. If the hospital’s foundation has an event, she is sure to volunteer.

“Her heart for our hospital’s mission is palpable, her smile is contagious and she exudes joy,” writes Sondra Boatman, a nurse who nominated Pennywell for a 2023 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Award for Community Service. “We’re so grateful for all she does, all for kids!”

Boatman says the St. Petersburg, Florida, native and mother of a first-grader and a fifth-grader has “tirelessly devoted her time and efforts to a multitude of initiatives through the Healthy at Hopkins program, the Johns Hopkins All Children’s Foundation, her church and the St. Pete public schools.”

Pennywell says she makes sure to smile at patients and their families in the hospital’s corridors and gathering areas.

“I try to put myself in their shoes,” says Pennywell, a program coordinator in the hospital’s risk management department. “People come to Hopkins All Children’s on their worst days. They’re sick, they’re afraid. I just try to see if I can bring a little light or joy to their day.”

Her enthusiasm goes beyond patients and visitors. Since she joined the Healthy at Hopkins fitness program, Pennywell regularly rounds up her colleagues to take a walk to reinvigorate the work day.

“Her ability to connect with and support people, regardless of background or circumstance,” writes Boatman, “is a direct reflection of Dr. King’s vision of a world free from discrimination and prejudice.”

Gina Wadas
Communications Associate
Institute for Nanobiotechnology
The Johns Hopkins University

Gina Wadas understands the importance of giving back. As the first member of her family to graduate from college, thanks to financial grants, scholarships and mentoring, Wadas recognizes that she didn’t get to where she is today without assistance.

“I don’t believe in the self-made person concept,” she says. “We all get by with help from people in some way.”

As communications associate at the Institute of Nanobiotechnology, Wadas helps faculty and research staff members share their stories of excellence and innovation. She also organizes giving programs for community members — and now pets — in need of a little assistance.

Wadas, who joined Johns Hopkins in 2017, has led her office’s annual holiday-giving efforts, including the Vernon Rice Memorial Holiday Turkey Program, the Adopt-a-Family program and the Adopt-a-Senior program for the past six years.

“For the adoption programs, I receive and prepare the wish lists, advertise sign-up, and wrap and deliver gifts,” says Wadas. “This year, we added a wish list of items for the nonprofit organization BARCS (Baltimore Animal Rescue and Care Shelter) to help staff carry out the day-to-day care and medical needs of shelter animals to prepare them for adoption.”

To date, the office has provided 81 Thanksgiving meals. It has also donated gifts, clothing and gift cards to 17 people in multiple families and seven older people.

Wadas is also an ambassador for The Johns Hopkins University’s Office of Sustainability, which seeks waste reduction through better recycling and compost and incineration bin use. Before moving to Oella, Maryland, in July, Wadas typically spent a few hours each week picking up trash on the streets, sidewalks and alleys around her Remington neighborhood in Baltimore.

Asked what advice she has for people interested in community service, Wadas notes there are many ways to get involved.

“Hopkins offers so many ways to give back,” she says. “The important thing is to inform yourself, pick an organization or opportunity, and try it out.”

Albert Wu
Professor
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine

For the past 10 years, Albert Wu has been working on improving the health of people in East Baltimore by increasing communication and engagement between community-based organizations and Johns Hopkins hospitals and clinics. Since 2017, he has served as president of Baltimore CONNECT, a nonprofit network of community-based organizations, churches and neighborhood associations that focuses on linking social and health care services across Baltimore.

An internist and a professor at the school of public health with a joint appointment at the school of medicine, Wu directs the Center for Health Services and Outcomes Research. He lives in North Baltimore.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Wu helped establish a weekly conference call, then a Zoom meeting, to help distribute information and supplies. In 2021, The Daily Record named him a COVID-19 Hero for his work to support and improve the well-being and resilience of both hospital workers and community members.

Baltimore CONNECT gave out food donations, roughly 900,000 face masks, face shields and hand sanitizer to community residents.

Earlier this year, the organization arranged for representatives from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to tell community leaders what was needed to continue health insurance for people whose Medicaid coverage had depended on the government’s public health emergency designation.

Baltimore CONNECT also has secured a grant from the Quest Diagnostics Foundation to support programs regarding mental health, youth engagement and care coordination in Baltimore’s underserved communities.

Wu says receiving a Martin Luther King Jr. community service award highlights what can be accomplished by uniting volunteers from Johns Hopkins and East Baltimore.

“I’m amazed by the dedication of the people on those virtual calls every week,” he says. “CONNECT has become a two-way channel for getting information in real time on what’s happening with residents in East Baltimore — and on what resources are available to help them.”

2024 Dr. Levi Watkins Jr. Ideals Award

Erica Martin Richards
Assistant Professor
Chair and Medical Director
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health
Sibley Memorial Hospital

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Johns Hopkins psychiatrist Erica Martin Richards helped scores of underserved people in the Washington, D.C., area who were struggling with anxiety, depression and other mental health disorders, thanks to virtual sessions arranged with the Sibley Memorial Hospital outreach staff. She also spoke by Zoom with congregants of local churches who wanted to learn about various conditions affecting their moods and behaviors.

Now, the chair and medical director of Sibley Memorial Hospital’s Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health continues to serve as a trusted community resource.

In addition to her clinical and administrative leadership of psychiatric services at the hospital, Richards is known for her work with Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser’s opioid task force as well as the D.C. Hospital Association, for which she serves on the Behavioral Health Collaborative, a group dedicated to increasing access to care for all members of Washington’s communities.

Recently, she was a guest speaker at Bowser’s national maternal health summit, during which she addressed the importance of providing mental health services to underserved populations including minorities and women across their reproductive lifespan.

Richards is also a respected teacher and mentor. Realizing that diversity and inclusion play a pivotal role in training and motivating the next generation of clinicians and scientists, Richards volunteers to teach medical students how to interview patients in a culturally competent manner during their substance abuse training modules.

The psychiatrist completed an internship and residency at Johns Hopkins and then worked at the National Institutes of Health before obtaining her present position in 2017. She says receiving the Dr. Levi Watkins Jr. Ideals Award confirms the importance of her dedication to improving the mental health of women and minorities.

“It’s really heartwarming to know that what I love to do is able to make a difference — and that other people can see that,” she says. “It’s acknowledgement that I am helping our communities through ensuring equal access to care, from diagnosis to treatment to participation in research, and that representation matters.”

About the Keynote Speaker

Entrepreneur, engineer, physician, former NASA astronaut, educator and humanitarian, Mae Jemison, is at the forefront of integrating the physical and social sciences with art and culture to solve problems and foster innovation.

Jemison served as a NASA astronaut for six years and was the first woman of color in the world to go into space, doing so on a joint space shuttle mission with the Japanese space agency. Trained as an engineer, social scientist and dancer, Jemison, a medical doctor, was the area Peace Corps medical officer for Sierra Leone and Liberia.

Mae Jemison graduated from Stanford University with a Bachelor of Science degree in chemical engineering and a Bachelor of Arts degree in African and African American studies. She received her medical doctorate from the Cornell University medical college.