Meet the First Half of Semifinalists for the 2025 Health Hero Challenge

Last week, we announced the 10 semifinalists of this year’s Be Well Philly Health Hero Challenge presented by Independence Blue Cross.

To give you a better sense of who they are and the charities they’re supporting, we’ll be posting some more information about all 10 semifinalists over the next two weeks. That way, you have a glimpse into how they are working to help Philadelphians live healthier lives and why they’re advocating for their selected nonprofits.

You can vote once per day, every day until July 31st for who you’d like to see in the final round. The winner will not only be crowned the 2025 Health Hero, but will receive a $15,000 donation to their charity of choice. The two runners-up will each receive a $2,500 donation to their selected charities, as well.

This week, we’re highlighting half of the 10 individuals who are in the running! Below, meet five of this year’s Health Hero Challenge semifinalists:

Who: Akayla Brown, a Gates scholar who founded West Philly-based Dimplez 4 Dayz Inc. — a youth-led nonprofit to foster healing, leadership, and opportunity for young people across Philadelphia — when she was 13.

Nonprofit of choice: Dimplez 4 Dayz Inc., which works to dismantle barriers to wellness for Black youth, especially girls and teens facing trauma, poverty, and systemic neglect. According to Brown, Dimplez 4 Dayz has transformed from a simple book-bag giveaway into a citywide movement, offering “vital programming in mental health, emotional regulation, workforce development, teen pregnancy prevention, peer mentoring, and healing-centered youth leadership.”

What motivates you to improve the lives of your community members?
“My motivation stems from lived experiences, as a Black girl in West Philadelphia who navigated grief, violence, and responsibility from a young age. I transformed that pain into purpose, creating spaces where others like me can heal, grow, and lead.

Each young person I encounter who shares their story reignites my passion for this work. I’ve witnessed how one conversation, one program, or a safe space can have a profoundly positive impact on a person’s life. This drives me — knowing we don’t need to wait until we’re older, perfect, or powerful to make a difference. We can act now.”

Who: Cheryl Colleluori, president of the HEADStrong Foundation and mother of the nonprofit’s founder, Nicholas “Nick” Colleluori.

Nonprofit of choice: HEADStrong Foundation, which Nick founded in 2007 — and is carried on by his family — to give cancer patients and their families access to care without the financial burden. After Nick was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma toward the end of his freshman year of college, he was driven to “bring dignity, support, and hope to patients and their loved ones,” Cheryl says. (Nick’s battle with cancer spanned 14 months. He passed away late November 2006.) The foundation’s key initiative is Nick’s House, which provides free, fully furnished housing to families who must travel to receive cancer care treatment in Philadelphia and Boston. HEADStrong also runs support programs, including weekly family-style meals, game nights, and other community-building activities.

What motivates you to improve the lives of your community members?
“What motivates me is deeply personal: my son Nick. Watching him battle cancer with such courage and a heart for others changed my life forever. Even in his most difficult days, Nick wasn’t focused on himself. He saw the struggles of the families around him [and] from his hospital bed, he made it his mission to help them. And now, it’s my mission, too. What drives me every single day is the chance to carry forward Nick’s legacy and to honor the compassion he showed even in the face of unimaginable hardship. Through the HEADStrong Foundation, we are changing lives [and] building a community of care that reminds people they are not alone, even in their darkest moments.”

Who: Noel Davis, a Philly fitness pro who founded Paris Fit Wellness Foundation — a nonprofit that centers on building stronger, healthier communities through movement, education, and connection.

Nonprofit of choice: Paris Fit Wellness Foundation, which provides free and low-cost wellness experiences to community members of all ages and abilities in order to make health and fitness accessible, inclusive, and empowering. Two such events are the Student Movement Back-to-School Drive and the Annual National Workout Day, the latter of which Governor Shapiro recently honored with a proclamation.

What motivates you to improve the lives of your community members?
“I’m motivated by the people who keep showing up, not because they have to, but because they’re choosing to invest in their own health and well-being. I’ve seen firsthand how movement can transform lives physically, mentally, and emotionally after a near-fatal car accident, and I want to continue creating spaces where people feel seen, supported, and celebrated. Knowing I can help someone feel stronger and more hopeful is what keeps me going.”

Who: Katelynn Devinney, who started Pockets of Hope just over three years ago after her mom underwent a mastectomy. Devinney says she “wanted to be able to help other women going through what [my mom] went through. We remind these women that they are not alone, and each sweatshirt is a symbol of support from a community of survivors, volunteers, and loved ones.”

Nonprofit of choice: Pockets of Hope, which provides custom-designed zip-up sweatshirts with sewn-in interior pockets to hold the post-surgical drainage tubes that are put into place after a mastectomy.

What motivates you to improve the lives of your community members?
“The people who receive our mastectomy sweatshirts are what motivates us. Every story we hear — from a mother healing after surgery to a young woman navigating a second cancer diagnosis — fuels our mission. Their strength, vulnerability, and gratitude are daily reminders of why we do this work. Knowing that something as simple as a sweatshirt can bring comfort, dignity, and a sense of being seen during such a difficult time is what drives us forward.”

Who: Lavon Howard, founder and CEO of Path to Greatness, which aims to “educate, empower, inspire, and transform youth’s lives.” Howard started Man Talk, a monthly virtual men’s group that serves as a safe space where men can be vulnerable.

Nonprofit of choice: Path to Greatness, an organization designed to help elementary, middle and high school students have meaningful conversations and activities in order to empower them to be proud of their individuality, address issues interfering with their potential, and help them realize greatness lives inside them all. According to Howard, Path to Greatness is predicated on three statements: I can be great! I shall be great! I will be great!

What motivates you to improve the lives of your community members?
“What motivates me is to have people be exposed to topics that I was not exposed to when I was a child. I want the community to become better human beings one step at a time, and to recognize the greatness and value they have within them. I want our youth to be healed from the trauma and hurt they have endured and not carry it into adulthood. In addition, I want the community to recognize that they were born to be a problem solver and they were born with a purpose to be successful.”

Vote once per day, every day, now through July 31st!