(MINEOLA, NY) – Nassau County Legislator Ellen W. Birnbaum (D-Great Neck) was delighted to honor Great Neck Breast Cancer Coalition President Laura Weinberg on Monday, March 16, 2015 at the 17th Annual Trailblazers Awards Ceremony at the Nassau County Legislative Chamber in Mineola. As part of Women’s History Month, the county legislators honor outstanding women in their legislative districts who have “blazed trails” through the wonderful work they do in their communities.
For over 20 years, Laura Weinberg has been working on local, state and national projects pertaining to the connection between breast cancer and the environment. She has served as president of the Great Neck Breast Cancer Coalition (GNBCC) since 2001 and has conducted hundreds of presentations in New York State and nationally concerning the reduction of toxins in our environment. The GNBCC also plays an important role in assisting newly diagnosed women with the Lend a Helping Hand Program. As a Board Member of the New York State Breast Cancer Network, Laura has advocated for the passage of legislation on breast cancer and environmental issues. Through GNBCC, in 2005, Laura founded the Students and Scientists Breast Cancer/Environmental Research Internship Program which has sponsored 46 high school students from Nassau County at nine research centers in the Northeast. For the past five years, Laura has been a Community Partner with Mount Sinai researchers for the federally-funded Breast Cancer & Environment Research Program (BCERP). Through a BCERP grant, Laura has been collaborating on an educational outreach project on “Breast Cancer and the Environment” with the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, the Witness Project of Harlem and the Huntington Breast Cancer Action Coalition.
Laura lives in Great Neck with her husband Amos who is an attorney. She has two daughters, Ali, who is an attorney and Kirby, who is a doctoral student of Psychology at Adelphi University. Laura graduated from Syracuse University in 1975 with a Bachelor of Science in Journalism from the Newhouse School. Laura was joined at the 17th Annual Trailblazers Awards Ceremony by her husband and two daughters.