By Karen Ernst
Laura Scott was the giant of public health you never heard of. She combined intelligence and generosity of spirit in a way that inspired trust. Because she was so good and so smart, when the sister of a teacher at my sons’ school succumbed to flu, I wanted to connect the family to Laura and to Families Fighting Flu. Laura gladly and quickly sent her business card and some materials for the family. I never even knew she was suffering through breast cancer.
Yesterday, when that breast cancer took Laura, we all lost something many never knew they had. We lost the champion of school-based flu clinics. We lost the champion of families who had been touched by influenza. We lost the mom who talked to college students about the need to take charge of their health by getting vaccinated against the flu.
Personally, I lost my flu vaccine mentor. The first time I spoke with Laura, we chatted about Jenny McCarthy’s gig on The View. And we talked about how we could inspire school children to get their flu vaccines through fun raffles. Over the years, I have appreciated her insight and advice as I worked to gain my footing with Voices for Vaccines. For many people in the vaccine world, Laura is a voice of reason and a sharp, thoughtful collaborator and colleague. She will be greatly missed.
You have perhaps never heard of Laura Scott, but you have been touched by her work. Please take a moment to honor her memory and her good work by donating in her memory to one of the two organizations about which she felt passionate:
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