Pathways Conference

2024 Pathways Conference Honors Top Volunteers

As a volunteer-powered organization, the Arthritis Foundation is guided by our strong community of patients and volunteers. Each of them is critical in driving the organization’s mission, priorities and research. This year’s award winners were recently honored at our annual Pathways Conference, held in the Washington DC Metro Area.

On March 8, 2024, the Arthritis Foundation named the recipients of the 2023 Charles B. Harding Award for Distinguished Service and the 2023-2024 Champion Awards, which honor excellence in volunteer leadership.

Each year, these awards are presented to volunteers who demonstrate their unwavering commitment to the organization’s mission to conquer arthritis. The selection process is made at the national level.

“As a volunteer-powered organization, we’re constantly in awe of the incredible devotion, effort and time our volunteers give to the Arthritis Foundation to help better the lives of those affected by arthritis nationwide,” says Steven Taylor, Arthritis Foundation president & CEO.

 

Charles B. Harding Award for Distinguished Service to Linda B. Grandolfo 

The Charles B. Harding Award for Distinguished Service is the highest level of national volunteer recognition from the Arthritis Foundation. The award was established in 1976 in honor of one of the Foundation’s most well-known chairs, a nationally regarded philanthropist. 

Linda B. Grandolfo, the Harding Award honoree at this year’s conference, didn’t know she would eventually encounter arthritis herself, firsthand. She first got to know us through Alpha Omicron Pi (AOII), the female college fraternity supporting our work since 1967, which she joined and has poured her heart into ever since. Linda saw early on what a worthwhile cause this is — and has shown time after time how much she believes in the important work we do. 

Linda has served on the Arthritis Foundation’s leadership board in the Greater Chicago market for many years, including chairing the board for five years. And she enthusiastically drives fundraising for our events and building awareness of our mission. Linda has also continued cultivating her deep roots with AOII, encouraging her sisters’ ongoing support of the Foundation’s mission. AOII presented their biggest gift ever to the Foundation in 2023: $1 million to help fund summer camps for kids with JA, the JA Family Summit, scholarships, our support of CARRA, our Helpline and several scientific research initiatives. 

Linda’s commitment and dedication to the arthritis community is unparalleled. And the Arthritis Foundation congratulates her on this well-deserved recognition! 

Champion Awards

The Arthritis Foundation’s Champion Awards are given to individual volunteers or volunteer groups who have demonstrated exemplary leadership and commitment to the organization. These volunteers lead fundraising efforts, build partnerships and champion arthritis-related activities within their community. This year, there were five deserving winners of the Champion Awards.  

Christine Cicio has a long history with arthritis and with the Arthritis Foundation. At age 12, she attended JA Camp Chat. As she grew older, she was a peer group leader and eventually became camp director. She volunteered to help run New Jersey’s first Walk to Cure Arthritis in 2005 and was a pioneer for the state’s first Jingle Bell Run in 2007. Additionally, Christine is a Platinum Ambassador, attending numerous Arthritis Foundation Advocacy Conferences. She continues to positively impact the Arthritis Foundation’s mission, both locally and nationally. She’s an active listener and mentor to other patients. People’s lives have changed because of her energy, experience and volunteerism.


 

Kerry Ferraro, along with her husband Al and daughter Abby, has been an outstanding volunteer for the Arthritis Foundation. She has worked hard to share information with other JA families, as well as with adults living with various forms of arthritis. Kerry has demonstrated her ability to open doors and mobilize volunteers through her involvement with the Arthritis Foundation in Eastern Pennsylvania. She and her family started the Abby’s Army Foundation in 2019 to raise awareness and funds for financial assistance to families of children with arthritis — to help ease the burden of the disease. Through the annual golf tournament they host, they’ve raised more than $100,000.


 

Jeff Larger’s remarkable dedication to the Arthritis Foundation’s Charity Auto Show in Columbus, Ohio, spans an impressive 41 years. He ensures the seamless execution of all logistical aspects of this major fundraiser — sowing grace, talent and a meticulous eye for what truly matters: people grappling with arthritis. His empathy goes beyond organizational responsibilities, reflecting a genuine concern for the well-being of those affected by this condition. Though not rooted in a personal diagnosis, Jeff’s commitment speaks volumes about his character and the depth of his devotion to positive changes in the arthritis community. Jeff embodies the essence of philanthropy in his awesome contributions to our mission.


 

Debbie Marshall has been loud and proud about sharing her journey with rheumatoid arthritis — and has been doing do so, and serving our cause at the local and national levels, for 15 years. As a volunteer in the Minnesota market, she has played several roles, including as local Arthritis Foundation board chair and helping host the National JA Conference (now JA Family Summit) in Minneapolis in 2019. She has helped develop the strategy around nationwide volunteer engagement, providing valuable insights from her perspective as a longtime volunteer and leader. Debbie has offered reviews of the annual Champion Award nomination process — reading and scoring dozens of submissions. But NOT her own! 


 

Rick Phillips is one of the Arthritis Foundation’s most vocal and dedicated volunteers, in Indiana and nationally. He uses his voice and experiences to advance our cause every chance he gets. Rick has been active in our Patient Leadership Council and Patient Perspectives Panel for many years. In everything he does, Rick brings to light his own insights, since first being diagnosed with diabetes at age 17, then with rheumatoid arthritis and ankylosing spondyloarthritis years later. Rick has been a guest host of the Live Yes! With Arthritis podcast and has represented the Arthritis Foundation in the Alliance for Aging Research’s “Talk Nerdy” program. All the way around, Rick has given so much to the arthritis community and continues to do so. His heart and soul push our mission way ahead.