LIVESTRONG Honors New York Legal Assistance Group with E. Lee Walker Award and Grant

Grant will fund legal services program for cancer survivors

AUSTIN, Texas – April 24, 2009 – The Lance Armstrong Foundation (LAF) recently awarded LegalHealth, a division of the New York Legal Assistance Group, the prestigious E. Lee Walker Imagination Award – a $10,000 grant that acknowledges a cancer survivorship-related innovation, named in honor of former chairman of the board, E. Lee Walker. The grant will enable LegalHealth to create a national network of cancer legal service providers, which will serve as a forum for participants to request and share information and best practices. In addition, the group plans to assist organizations interested in starting legal programs.

“Our grants and programs serve the needs of people living with cancer,” said Andy Miller, vice president of programs and policy at the Lance Armstrong Foundation. “The Lance Armstrong Foundation is proud to give organizations like the New York Legal Assistance Group the resources and support they need to help further their mission.”

The LAF’s grant will also help LegalHealth offer additional legal advocacy in the healthcare and community setting, in an effort to provide cancer survivors in the New York area with the legal services they need to improve the quality of their lives.

“With the Lance Armstrong Foundation’s help, this program has the potential to enrich the national cancer survivorship movement by drawing attention to the unmet legal needs of people with cancer,” said Randye Retkin, Director of LegalHealth. “We are honored to be a recipient of the E. Lee Walker Award, and look forward to continue working with the LAF to educate and empower people affected by cancer."

Since the organization’s inception in 1997, the LAF has awarded more than $60 million to cancer survivorship programs, research and organizations.

About the Lance Armstrong Foundation
At the Lance Armstrong Foundation, we fight for the 28 million people around the world living with cancer today. There can be – and should be – life after cancer for more people. That's why we kick in at the moment of diagnosis, giving people the resources and support they need to fight cancer head-on. We find innovative ways to raise awareness, fund research and end the stigma about cancer that many survivors face. We connect people and communities to drive social change, and we call for state, national and world leaders to help fight this disease. Anyone anywhere can join our fight against cancer. Join us at www.LIVESTRONG.org.

About LegalHealth and the New York Legal Assistance Group
LegalHealth partners with medical professionals to address the nonmedical needs of low-income people with serious health problems. LegalHealth complements health care with legal care – providing free legal services in medical facilities and training healthcare professionals to understand the legal issues their patients face. Founded in 1990, the New York Legal Assistance Group (NYLAG) is a non-profit law office that provides free civil legal services to low-income New Yorkers. In addition to LegalHealth, NYLAG provides specialized legal assistance for immigrants, the elderly, victims of domestic violence, the chronically ill, children with special needs, people with disabilities, low-wage workers, and Holocaust survivors among others. Learn more at www.legalhealth.org.