Harrisburg, PA–Dr. Wanda Filer was named by former Pennsylvania First Lady Michele M. Ridge to succeed her as the Vision of Hope Advisory Council Chair. First Lady Ridge made the announcement today at its advisory council meeting at the West Shore Country Club in Camp Hill.
Former Vision of Hope Advisory Council Chair, Michele Ridge, will continue to serve as Honorary Chair of the Vision of Hope Gala and Silent Auction.
Filer is the founder and president of Strategic Health Institute, a health policy, public health advocacy and health education consulting organization that works to improve public health and healthcare partnerships.
Filer also served as a medical consultant for WGAL-TV 8 and received her Master’s degree in Business Administration at the Pennsylvania State University.
She also serves as a family physician at York Health System Medical Group and served as the Physician General of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania from 1996 until 1998 under Gov. Tom Ridge.
“Wanda’s experience in the health care field and her work with children will greatly benefit the Vision of Hope Council,” said Delilah Rumburg, Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape. “Her efforts to address the needs of underserved populations, children and victims of abuse will help the Vision of Hope continue to grow in its efforts to end child sexual abuse.”
Vision of Hope launched in July 2005 by PCAR and Michele Ridge, is a national resource on child sexual abuse prevention and intervention.
The project works to protect—and restore—the hopes and dreams of children who have experienced sexual violence and create permanent change that allows all children to live a life free from sexual violence.
“Too often I’ve seen the faces of young victims whose lives have been devastated by acts of sexual violence,” Filer said. “I believe each of us has the power to make a difference in the life of a child.
We have the ability to intervene and to protect children from further devastation. My goal is to support and strengthen innovative child sexual abuse prevention strategies.”
The Vision of Hope Gala and Silent Auction is held every April and serves as the primary fundraiser to support VOH projects. For more information on the Vision of Hope Gala and Silent Auction, visit www.theirhope.org.