(www.communityhealthleaders.com) Zaid Gayle, executive director, Peace4Kids, Compton, California.
Zaid Gayle is Reforming Foster Care
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NOVEMBER 14, 2008
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation

When Zaid Gayle was a teenager, he founded a youth group that promoted learning and self-expression. That experience launched Gayle into a lifetime of service.
In 1998, he created Peace4Kids, a “community-as-family” safe haven for foster children in the violent Watts area of South Los Angeles. At Peace4Kids adult volunteers become a consistent presence in the children’s lives.
During the past four years, the program has grown from having no budget to having $1 million annually with 10 full-time staff members and nearly 100 adult volunteers. Gayle also has been a key influence in foster care reform in California.
www.peace4kids.org
Listen to Zaid Gayle talk about Peace4Kids: www.rwjf.org/newsroom/product.jsp
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) announced the 2008 recipients of its Community Health Leaders (CHL) Award at its Annual Meeting in San Diego. The CHL Award honors unrecognized individuals who overcome daunting odds to improve the health and quality of life for underserved men, women and children in communities across the United States.
Now in its 15th year, the CHL awardees represent the geographical, cultural, ethnic, social and economic diversity of America. From providing deaf patients better access to medical care with interpreters, to giving low-income children a fair start on their education with eye exams, to violence prevention programs for teens, the awardees have dedicated themselves to tackling some of the most intractable problems affecting the health of their communities.
This year’s winners join a distinguished and diverse group of 150 previous award recipients. The 2008 Community Health Leaders are:
Stephen Black
Anita Buel
Deann Canuteson
Scott Charles
Jonathan Delman
Donene Feist
Zaid Gayle
Judi Hilman
Ray Lopez
Maria Ramos
Read more about the 2008 Community Health Leaders: www.happynews.com/ten-extraordinary-americans-recognized-innovation-health-care