PRESS RELEASE
July 26, 2017 4:00 p.m.
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (July 19, 2017) – The Florida Forum Speaker Series, produced by The Women’s Board of Wolfson Children’s Hospital, raises funds with the goal of providing the best, most technologically advanced health care for children. Since 1992, the Florida Forum has been honored to host renowned speakers from around the world offering profound insights and fascinating discussion on a broad range of issues. The series is presented by long-time partners Wells Fargo, Florida Blue and Landstar, avid and valued supporters of The Women’s Board and its mission to raise funds and awareness for Wolfson Children’s Hospital. These presentations will take place at the Times-Union Center for the Performing Arts.
The 2017-2018 series will open on Nov. 8 with Tom Brokaw. Brokaw has spent his entire journalistic career with NBC News beginning in 1966 where he covered Ronald Reagan’s first run for public office. Brokaw is best known as the anchor and managing editor of NBC Nightly News from 1982 to 2004.He was one of the “Big Three” news anchors in the U.S. during the 1980s, 1990s and early 2000s. Brokaw is the author of The Greatest Generation (1998), one of the most popular non-fiction books of the 20th century and author of five other books. Brokaw has won every major award in his craft including Peabody, DuPonts, Emmys and lifetime achievement recognition. In 2014 President Barack Obama awarded Brokaw with the Presidential Medal of Freedom. He now serves as a Special Correspondent for NBC News and works on documentaries for other outlets.
The series continues on Jan 16, 2018 with Theo Epstein, a baseball executive with the Chicago Cubs. Epstein became the youngest general manager (GM) in the history of MLB, when the Boston Red Sox hired him at the age of 28 on Nov. 25, 2002. In 2004, the Red Sox won their first World Series championship in 86 years and won another championship in 2007. On Oct. 21, 2011, he resigned from his job in Boston to become President of Baseball Operations for the Chicago Cubs, who won their first World Series championship in 108 years in 2016.
The season concludes March 5, 2018, with Ambassador Caroline Kennedy. Kennedy is an author, attorney, and diplomat who served as the United States Ambassador to Japan from 2013 to 2017. She is a prominent member of the Kennedy family and the only surviving child of President John F. Kennedy and First Lady Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy. Kennedy is an editor of nine New York Timesbest-selling books on constitutional law, American history, politics and poetry. Kennedy is Honorary President of the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation and a member of the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award Committee. A graduate of Harvard University and Columbia Law School, she is also Honorary Chair of the Senior Advisory Committee of the Institute of Politics at Harvard University,
For more information, go to The Women’s Board website at https://womensboardwolfsonchildrenshospital.com.
About the Florida Forum
One of two major benefits produced annually by the all-volunteer Women’s Board, the 2017-2018 Florida Forum will contribute vital funds for program and clinical equipment needs as part of a five-year, $4 million pledge supporting the Pediatric Surgery Center of Distinction. The Center will assure access to the most advanced pediatric surgical services and technologies available, enable the most skilled surgical staff to work on advancing surgical techniques, expand the use of minimally invasive and robotic surgery, and help the hospital meet the needs of pediatric trauma patients.
About the Women’s Board of Wolfson Children’s Hospital
Established in 1973 by Ellen Cavert, the ongoing mission of the all-volunteer Women’s Board is to raise community awareness and fund state-of-the-art infrastructure, programming and services for Wolfson Children’s Hospital—the only dedicated children’s inpatient health care facility in the region. Since its inception, The Women’s Board has raised more than $30 million in support of Wolfson Children’s Hospital to ensure the advancement of first-rate medical care for all children. Two annual fundraisers, the Art & Antiques Show and Florida Forum speaker series, enable the Board to donate more than $1 million a year to Wolfson Children’s Hospital.