On June 25, 2022, CHER was thrilled to attend the 42nd annual Black and White Ball presented by the LGBTQ Center of Long Beach, to honor the Institute’s own Dr. Alex Washington! Surrounded by community members and long-time community partners including Wendell Glenn and Ray Edward Ruiz with Behavioral Health Services, Inc., we celebrated as Dr. Alex Washington was presented with the Ellen Ward Leadership Award. Dr. Alex Washington was one of five honorees recognized at the ball.
Dr. Washington was praised for his leadership within the community and his continuous dedication to LGBTQ health equity research focused on HIV and PrEP, and more recently, on increasing uptake of COVID-19 vaccines among Black and Latinx substance using men who have sex with men. We are so proud of Dr. Washington, and we were honored to share in his special moment as the LGBTQ community and public health professionals alike honored him.