Volume 23, No. 1 - March 1998            Published by the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases

The National Foundation for Infectious Diseases (NFID) awarded Gen. Colin L. Powell, former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Maurice R. Hilleman, PhD, renowned vaccine researcher, its prestigious awards at the NFID Awards Dinner on February 26, 1998.

The black-tie event, held at the Ritz-Carlton, Pentagon City in Arlington, VA, honors individuals whose outstanding efforts and achievements have contributed significantly to improving health worldwide.

Dr. Hilleman received the Maxwell Finland Award for Scientific Achievement, which is awarded to a scientist who has made outstanding contributions to the understanding of infectious diseases or public health. Gen. Powell was honored with the Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter Award for Humanitarian Contributions to the Health of Humankind, which is awarded to individuals whose outstanding humanitarian efforts and achievements have contributed significantly to improving the world's health.

The Maxwell Finland Award for Scientific Achievement is named for the late Maxwell Finland, MD, a distinguished scholar, scientist, and teacher. Dr. Finland, a former member of the NFID Board of Directors, did pioneering work in the diagnosis, treatment, and epidemiology of bacterial infections; the evaluation of antimicrobials; and the demonstration of the evolving problem of antimicrobial resistance. He was a driving force in shaping infectious diseases training programs in the United States and in defining the discipline of infectious diseases as we know it today..

Accepting the award Dr. Hilleman said, "It's a great honor to receive the Maxwell Finland Award that celebrates the memory of our old friend, Dr. Finland. I thank the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases for its generous consideration in granting this award to me tonight."

NFID President Herbert L. DuPont, MD, and NFID Vice President Susan J. Rehm, MD, presented Dr. Hilleman with the award for his "unparalleled excellence" in vaccine research,cancer and virus research, and for his ability to bring together key figures in academia, industry, and government.."

Known as the scientist who has developed more vaccines than any other person, Dr. Hilleman's professional career has spanned more than five decades in academia, government, and industry. During his distinguished career, Dr. Hilleman focused on both basic and applied research and made numerous breakthrough discoveries.

Dr. Hilleman is "one of the true heroes of science and medicine in the 20th century," said Anthony S. Fauci, MD, director, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), National Institutes of Health (NIH), and recipient of the Maxwell Finland Award in 1989.

For his outstanding efforts and pioneering work in science, Dr. Hilleman has received many honors, including the Lasker Medical Research Award, the National Medal of Science, the Special Lifetime Achievement Award from the World Health Organization's Children's Vaccine Initiative, the Distinguished Service Medal for Research, and the Albert B. Sabin Gold Medal and Lifetime Achievement awards.

Dr. Hilleman developed more than 40 vaccines and is credited for saving millions of lives from diseases such as chickenpox, hepatitis, measles, mumps, and rubella. "To have guided just one of these vaccines to completion would have been a career for anyone else he did them all," said Dr. Fauci. However, Dr. Hilleman is not content with the remarkable progress in vaccine research and is hopeful that some of today's most discouraging infectious diseases AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis soon will be prevented through immunization.

"Vaccines not only prevent disability and save lives, but they also save money," Dr. Hilleman added. "This is a miracle in its own right for many nations, . . . but tragically, the under use of vaccines worldwide still leaves many lives needlessly lost and leaves much economic waste."

Dr. Hilleman is hopeful that this problem, as well as other disease prevention challenges, soon will be overcome: "I would emphasize that the battle against infections is worth waging; the war against disease is worth the winning. And vaccines are clearly the most effective and affordable ammunition in the arsenal for defense against infectious diseases."

The Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter Award for Humanitarian Contributions to the Health of Humankind is named for President and Mrs. Carter, who as outstanding humanitarians have worked tirelessly to improve the quality of life for people worldwide. They are co-founders of The Carter Center, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization based in Atlanta and dedicated to improving the quality of life. Through their work at The Carter Center, President and Mrs. Carter have worked to resolve conflict peacefully, promote democracy, protect human rights, and prevent and eradicate disease.

The Honorable Paul G. Rogers, the 1996 Maxwell Finland awardee and chairman of the NFID Board of Trustees, and Dr. DuPont presented this award to Gen. Powell.

Presenting the award on behalf of NFID, Dr. DuPont said, "This award is given to you for your commitment to our nation's youth at-risk and for your remarkable leadership in giving these individuals a healthy and productive start in life." P "I cannot tell you how deeply honored I am to receive this recognition in the name of President and Mrs. Carter two people that I know very, very well," Gen. Powell said. He and President Carter recently collaborated on overseeing elections in Jamaica. In Haiti, he and President Carter also successfully prevented an invasion, allowing for "a peaceful transition to democracy."

In addition to receiving the Carter award, Gen. Powell had a brand-new NFID fellowship program named in his honor. "We are pleased to announce that the NFID Colin L. Powell Minority Postdoctoral Fellowship in Tropical Disease Research will provide minority researchers with financial support to become tropical disease specialists," said Dr. DuPont.

The Foundation for Microbiology, Glaxo Wellcome Inc., and NFID are providing an initial three-year funding commitment for the fellowship. Gen. Powell said, "I thank you for that commitment to this part of our population that is sometimes overlooked and sometimes does not get the support they need for the kind of research they have to do in order to help with the work of this Foundation."

After 35 years as a distinguished soldier and as an advisor to Presidents Reagan, Bush, and Clinton, Gen. Powell decided "to focus on the problems of America's young people" in his retirement.

"Many of us would have taken a well-deserved retirement after such a rigorous and successful career," said Robert A. Ingram, president and chief executive officer of Glaxo Wellcome Inc., "but Colin has gone on to put his passion and compassion to work on yet another issue of national importance the future of our youth."

Gen. Powell currently serves as chairman of America's Promise The Alliance for Youth, a national organization dedicated to improving the lives of our nation's at-risk youth. As chairman, he encourages businesses, organizations, and individuals to give their time to improve the lives of children. By focusing on providing children with mentors, safe places in which to grow and learn, marketable skills to compete in the 21st Century, an understanding of the value of service, and a healthy start in life, Gen. Powell is hopeful that these resources can help us restore a "sense of community" and provide children with the necessary tools that they need to succeed in life.

"I am looking forward to working with the Foundation and all of the companies represented here to create more partnerships to see if we can work more closely together to save these children," said Gen. Powell. "That's what this is all about for me and for Alma in this new phase of our life following our many, many years of service to the nation as a soldier and a soldier's wife."

Past recipients of the Maxwell Finland Award are Joshua Lederberg, PhD, Nobel Prize winner and genetics research pioneer; the Honorable Paul G. Rogers, former congressman from Florida; the Honorable Dale Bumpers, senator from Arkansas, and Mrs. Betty F. Bumpers, co-founder, "Every Child by Two"; Elizabeth Hanford Dole, president, American Red Cross; Arthur Ashe, Jr., champion tennis player and humanitarian; Michael E. DeBakey, MD, chancellor, Baylor College of Medicine and renowned surgeon; Mrs. Albert Lasker, president, Albert and Mary Lasker Foundation; P. Roy Vagelos, MD, former chief executive officer, Merck & Co., Inc.; Anthony S. Fauci, MD, director, NIAID, NIH; and C. Everett Koop, MD, ScD, former US surgeon general.

The first Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter Award for Humanitarian Contributions to the Health of Humankind was presented in 1997 to President and Mrs. Carter.

The honorary co-chairs for the occasion were the President and Mrs. Clinton, former President Jimmy Carter and Mrs. Carter, and former President Gerald R. Ford and Mrs. Ford. The Hon. Paul G. Rogers served as the master of ceremonies and co-chair of the gala, along with Dr. Rehm. The dinner was preceded by a reception sponsored by Merck Vaccine Division.

The US Armed Forces Color Guard opened the evening with the presentation of the colors. After the pledge of allegiance was recited by the audience, former House Minority Leader Robert Michel sang his rendition of "God Bless America."

After dinner, members of the Georgetown University Concert Choir performed selections from Bach, Tye, and Tallis.

Among the many distinguished guests in attendance were: Mayor Marion Barry, Jr., of the District of Columbia; His Excellency Mahdi Ibrahim Mohamed, the ambassador of the Republic of the Sudan; Dr. Koop, former US surgeon general and the first recipient of the Maxwell Finland Award; Dr. Fauci, director, NIAID at NIH and the 1989 Maxwell Finland Award honoree; Nobel Laureate Dr. Lederberg, last year's recipient of the Maxwell Finland Award for Scientific Achievement; Kenneth Kizer, MD, undersecretary for health, Department of Veterans Affairs; and Joseph E. McDade, PhD, acting deputy director, National Center for Infectious Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

• Photos taken at the Dinner