Lee Memorial Health System Foundation announces that it will honor Richard B. Akin, one of Southwest Florida’s leading child advocates, at its 5th Annual Prendergast Lectureship set for 7 p.m. on Thursday, April 22, 2010 at Lexington Country Club, located at 16257 Willowcrest Way in Fort Myers.

Richard B. Akin is president/CEO of Collier Health Services, Inc. and currently serves in a second term as chairman of Lee Memorial Health System’s Board of Directors. Active with numerous healthcare organizations and legislative issues, Akin has devoted his career to advocating on behalf of Southwest Florida’s uninsured and underserved children.

His work has encompassed medical care, safety programs and abuse prevention. Akin is currently providing a leadership role on Lee Memorial Health System’s expansion of The Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida and its $150 million capital campaign.

Lee Memorial Health System President Jim Nathan praised Akin’s work and said, “Richard has dedicated his life to caring for others and toward excellence in health care. His leadership has brought essential and unique health services to children and adults of Southwest Florida for decades. He is truly a passionate health advocate for persons of all ages. Richard Akin is truly deserving of the honor of being named Child Advocate of the Year; it is a privilege to call Richard my colleague and friend.”

Akin is honored to be the recipient of the annual award and added, “This award is special and means a great deal to me, but it is not about me. It is about the children and their family members – each one deserving of the same dignity and respect given to those who do not face access barriers to quality healthcare. I express my sincere gratitude to the Prendergast family in their proactive approach to keeping area children healthy and safe.”

Akin’s award will be presented following a lecture by one of the country’s foremost and sought-after speakers on child abuse, Robin Karr-Morse.

Karr-Morse, an author and therapist, will deliver a speech titled, “Ghosts From the Nursery: Tracing the Roots of Violence.” Karr-Morse offers a shocking, but empowering message: to understand violent behavior, we must look earlier before adolescence, before grade school, before pre-school to the cradle.

Karr-Morse will present startling evidence that points out that violent behavior is born and cultivated as early as the earliest months of life. It is well-known that the foundations for trust, empathy, conscience and lifelong learning are laid down in infancy. It is also when a predisposition towards violent behavior is “hardwired” into the brain, strongly influenced by environment and neurobiological makeup. Karr-Morse currently continues her work to shift the focus of community systems of social and mental health practices from fixing broken kids to building healthy ones as executive director of the Parenting Institute.

The lecture series is supported in part by the Prendergast Family Endowment Fund. Eileen Prendergast made a $1 million gift to establish the Prendergast Family Endowment Fund for The Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida’s Child Advocacy Program. The program features parenting classes taught in partnership with the Children’s Advocacy Center of Southwest Florida to prevent child abuse.

The lecture is free of charge, but community members are asked to RSVP by April 16 to the LMHS Foundation at 239-985-3550.