Sinai Community Institute’s Imelda Villa, a Family Case Management Outreach worker, was recently awarded the HealthCare CommUnity Health Heroes Award from MeridianHealth Illinois, a WellCare Health Plans, Inc.  The 2019 MeridianHealth CommUnity Hero awards, now in their third year, are based on nominations received from throughout the region and were distributed across four categories including advocacy, healthcare, social service innovation, and community support. Villa started working for Mt. Sinai Hospital in November of 1994 as a physician referral coordinator with Health Works of Cook County and transferred to Sinai Community Institute’s Family Case Management in 2003.  She currently works as a family case management outreach worker for Better Birth Outcomes, a specialized program that provides intensive, holistic prenatal service to high-risk pregnant women. Imelda was raised near Mount Sinai Hospital in a big family of 13 children, and she has been active in her community and church since she was 10 years old.  She started her community service work by helping to raising money for her church and she volunteered to help serve meals to the elderly.  All honorees received a $500 donation from MeridianHealth Plan to the charity of their choice. For anyone interested in learning more about SCI’s programs, please call 773-257-6216 or visit www.sinai.org.