Meet Your State Advocacy Captains!

Northport, New York
Karen_anzalone@yahoo.com

I’m a COPD Advocate because I wanted to help make a difference for the 24 million Americans with COPD. My father died from COPD in November 2010. As his primary caregiver and a witness to the devastating effects of this disease, I knew I needed to make a difference for everyone affected by COPD. My journey has taken me from being my Dad’s caregiver to serving the COPD community. My focus has expanded to community based advocacy and social media, “advocacy is key to raising awareness”.

As State Captain I’d like to raise COPD awareness. It’s vital that we educate and empower patients to learn and manage their COPD. I would like to get more caregivers involved with advocacy efforts.

Some of my advocacy work has included, creating a virtual World COPD Day in social media which resulted in thousands of participants and was shared worldwide.

My proudest COPD moment was after my father passed away in 2010 from COPD I met with Representative Steve Israel and convinced him to join the Congressional COPD Caucus.

My inspiration to share is, “what lies behind us and what lies ahead of us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us” -Ralph Waldo Emerson