San Diego, CA -- (ReleaseWire) -- 05/13/2009 -- Lisa Copen, founder of Rest Ministries, Inc., the largest Christian organization specifically for those with chronic illness or pain, won the Our Bodies Ourselves Award for Women’s Health Hero: Audience Choice.

On May 11, 2009 Our Bodies Ourselves announced the 2009 Womens’ Health Heroes, honoring the work of women’s health advocates worldwide, marking OBOS’s first annual effort to spotlight the diversity of care, education and activism in communities around the world.

See OBOS’s announcement, as well as the nomination and kind comments for Lisa here:
http://www.ourbodiesourblog.org/womens-health-heroes-2009

"Every day millions of people worldwide do incredible work to improve the health and well-being of women, and we want to bring attention to their efforts," said Our Bodies Ourselves Executive Director Judy Norsigian. "Many of our heroes accomplish so much with very few resources, particularly on the frontlines of public health, where gaps in the quality of care and healthcare access remain persistent."

The inaugural group, chosen from close to 100 nominations, represents seven countries: United States (13), Canada (2), Australia, The Netherlands, Nigeria, United Kingdom, Ukraine.

Copen, 40, who began Rest Ministries in 1997 after living four years with rheumatoid arthritis and not finding illness support that was faith-based says, “It’s a great honor to win this award, but more exciting is the opportunity to have the opportunity for Rest Ministries to gain the exposure. We sponsor National Invisible Chronic Illness Awareness Week each September and have a five-day virtual conference online. I hope that this award will be a reminder of the resources that are out there to encourage people while living with illness.”

To find out more about Rest Ministries visit our web site at http://www.restministries.org and information for National Invisible Chronic Illness Awareness Week is now being updated for 2009 at http://www.invisibleillnessweek.com