Hollywood superstar Halle Berry, last week, joined U.S. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito to host a “Girls Rise Up” event at Charleston’s Piedmont Elementary School. The purpose of both the event, and the program, is to promote female empowerment, education, fitness, and self-confidence.
While at Piedmont Elementary, Berry and Capito spent time with female fifth graders discussing their possible career paths, as well as the importance of leadership. Students then had the chance to take the Girls Rise Up Challenge, and commit to goals to help put them on a pathway to success. Last week’s event marked the 32nd event since the program’s inception.
“Inspiring the next generation of West Virginians – especially our young women – is so important to me,” Capito said. “It was so special to have an accomplished female actress like Halle Berry here with me in Charleston to help deliver this message. This message comes at such a critical point in the lives of these young women, and I am confident that they will go on to do great things in the future.”
Capito launched the West Virginia Girls Rise Up program in 2015 to instill confidence in West Virginia’s young women, and empower them to be strong and kind female leaders.
The program focuses on three areas: education, fitness, and self-confidence.
After concluding their visit to Piedmont, Berry and Capito traveled to the Kanawha County Public Library, where they hosted a roundtable discussion on the “Advancing Menopause and Mid-Life Women’s Health Act.” Once enacted, the bipartisan legislation that would boost federal research on menopause and would, for the first time, coordinate the federal government’s existing programs related to menopause and mid-life women’s health. The roundtable discussion included patients, medical providers, academics, and state officials from across West Virginia.
“Women have deserved more from our healthcare systems for far too long, but that’s about to change. I’m thrilled to be in West Virginia and am grateful for Senator Capito’s leadership on the bipartisan Advancing Menopause and Mid-Life Women’s Health Act. I look forward to working alongside her to get it over the finish line,” Berry said.
“Menopause is a fact of life for women and something we all deserve to know more about,” Capito said. “Menopause can impact every aspect of a woman’s life – from their career to their relationships—and for too long, it has only been whispered about among our friends and health care providers. I’m thrilled to have Halle Berry join us in West Virginia to discuss this important issue that she has so fiercely advocated for through many efforts. Her voice, along with the expertise of the individuals we heard from at the roundtable, are so valuable as we work together to address the realities that women are facing every day.”
The Advancing Menopause and Mid-Life Women’s Health Act, would strengthen and expand federal research on menopause, health care workforce training, awareness and education efforts, and public health promotion and prevention to better address menopause and mid-life women’s health issues.
75 million women are in perimenopause, menopause, or post-menopause right now in the U.S.—with 6,000 more women reaching menopause each day. Despite the fact that half the population in the U.S. will eventually experience menopause, menopause research has long been underinvested in and overlooked. To date, there are few federally funded clinical trials on menopause and menopausal hormone therapy and very little menopause education for doctors—only 30% of U.S. residency programs offer a formal menopause curriculum according to a recent survey, and 80% of OB-GYN residents admit to being ill-prepared to discuss menopause.