** An Evening with the Lacks Family: A SPECIAL EVENT in Honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day**

HELD OFFSITE at the Richardson-Mees Performing Arts Center at LAWRENCE ACADEMY.  Set GPS to 35 LOWELL ROAD in Groton, MA. (Looking for a map? Click HERE for a 3D Map of Lawrence Academy.)

Meet the family behind the most famous cells in human history! The "immortal" HeLa cells, taken from Henrietta Lacks without her knowledge in 1951, have changed modern medicine for the past 75 years--fueling nearly every major medical breakthrough from the polio vaccine to cancer to AIDS research to gene mapping to the COVID vaccine! The world finally learned the true story of Henrietta herself from Rebecca Skloot's runaway 2010 bestseller, The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks.

Our Honored Guests:

VICTORIA BAPTISTE is Henrietta Lacks’ Great-Granddaughter. She travels regularly to talk about the Lacks family’s story. Inspired by Henrietta’s life, she is a travel nurse. As a patient’s advocate, Victoria prides herself on treating patients with respect and dignity and—most importantly—making sure they understand their care. She finds her career fulfilling because it gives her the opportunity to educate patients. 

SHIRLEY LACKS is Henrietta's daughter-in-law and her daughter Deborah’s childhood best friend. Since retiring from the banking industry, Shirley has dedicated much of her time to traveling around the country, keeping Henrietta’s legacy alive as a promise to her sister-in-law, Deborah Lacks. Henrietta’s enormous contribution to science has afforded Shirley the opportunity to be a voice for patient rights. Shirley is a board member of the Henrietta Lacks Legacy Group which promotes and preserve the history of Turner Station, Maryland and the legacy of Henrietta Lacks who resided in Turner Station. Shirley will continue to walk the path in telling Henrietta’s story and the family’s journey while promoting social justice and health equity.

Join us and Henrietta Lacks' family members this Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day for a powerful conversation on the 'immortal' HeLa cells and the proud family heritage behind them. Together, let's explore the human story of scientific progress, the ethics of medical research, and the family's ongoing global mission for health equity and social justice. 

How Henrietta Lacks HeLa Cells Changed Medicine Forever: A brief summary of their importance and why this event is unmissable!

Presented in partnership with Lawrence Academy, Groton's DEI Committee, and the Groton Public Library.

Made possible through the generous support of the Town of Groton's Lecture Fund, Groton Public Library Endowment Trust, and Lawrence Academy, in cooperation with the Lyceum Agency.