How Rep. Lauren Underwood Helps Carry Jackie Robinson’s Legacy

“It gave us exposure to even let us know that those circles exist,” she said, “and how to navigate them. It created that opportunity for me as a student nurse to see myself in a place where there has literally never been anybody like me before.”

Before she entered Congress, Underwood, a Democrat, was a senior adviser at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, helping communities respond to disasters and public health emergencies and assisting with the implementation of the Affordable Care Act. She decided to run for a seat in the House of Representatives in 2018.

“I know Jackie would have been elated about the fact that she is dedicated to improving conditions in the community, particularly the dispensing of health care,” said Britton, the president of the foundation. “He would have been so proud of the fact that she used her brilliance and used it just as he used his celebrity to improve society.”

Underwood spoke at the foundation’s recent dinner in March, and discussed her special connection to Rachel Robinson, who also earned a postgraduate degree in psychiatric nursing. In her speech, Underwood said she would not have known how to attain any of her career goals without the foundation and its network of staff, alumni and donors.

She thanked Rachel Robinson, “for believing in and investing in little ol’ me and putting me on a path that really began here with the Jackie Robinson Foundation.”

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/14/sports/baseball/lauren-underwood-jackie-robinson-foundation.html