St. Louis County to present Public Health Achievement Awards at Tuesday board meeting

By Dana Kazel

The St. Louis County Board and the county's Public Health Division will present Public Health Achievement Awards to four individuals in recognition of their work to improve the health of individuals and communities in St. Louis County. The awards will be presented during the St. Louis County Board Meeting on April 15 at 10 a.m. in the County Board Room at the Courthouse in Duluth. The meeting will be livestreamed on Facebook for anyone wishing to view it remotely.

This year's honorees include Dr. Jan Baldwin, Christina Trok, Mel Alvar, and Nathan Kesti. Each has shown leadership and commitment as they worked to address a variety of public health focus areas, including perinatal substance use, birth equity, human trafficking and homelessness.

The awards are presented annually as part of National Public Health Week, which was April 7-13, 2025.

"Public Health is about community," said Amy Westbrook, St. Louis County Public Health Division Director. "Just as we're working to improve the health of communities, we also rely on partnerships within our communities to best understand needs and provide services. So we look forward to presenting these awards to recognize the people who work alongside us in public health partnership."

St. Louis County Public Health is a division of the Public Health and Human Services Department. Public Health nurses, nutritionists and other staff serve citizens countywide from offices in Duluth, Virginia, Hibbing and Ely. To learn more, call (218) 725-5210 or visit stlouiscounytmn.gov/publichealth.