Pennsylvania's Larry Hochendoner Named Purpose Prize Fellow

Purpose Prizes Honor Americans Over Age 60 for Making an Extraordinary Impact in their Encore Careers

PHILADELPHIA, Nov. 12, 2010 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Civic Ventures today announced that Larry Hochendoner , from Harrisburg and Philadelphia, is a 2010 Purpose Prize Fellow. Hochendoner was recognized as a social entrepreneur over 60 who, in his encore careers, is using his experience and passion to make an extraordinary impact on society's biggest challenges. Now in its fifth year, the six-year, $17 million Purpose Prize program is the nation's only large-scale investment in social innovators in the second half of life.

Hochendoner was named a Fellow because of his outstanding work in bringing rapid diagnostic testing for HIV/AIDS to people where they live rather than having people visit clinics.

Hochendoner empowers communities to identify and assist members infected by HIV through outreach, testing, education, counseling and links to medical care. Since he pioneered World Health Care Infrastructures as the keystone of his encore career, Hochendoner and his colleagues have developed specialized testing outreach and education interventions with seven (7) countries: for complete list of partners visit www.worldhci.org and click on "partners."

"Purpose Prize Fellows show what's possible in our communities – and the world – when experienced adults apply their passion and skill to improve the lives of others," said Alexandra Cespedes Kent, Director of The Purpose Prize. "Imagine the potential for society if tens of thousands of adults focused their know-how on the social causes they are most passionate about – it's a tremendous opportunity."

The 46 Purpose Prize Fellows of 2010 will be honored at the Purpose Prize Summit November 12-14 in Philadelphia. Approximately 400 attendees of the invitation-only event will hear from featured speakers such as W. Wilson Goode Sr. (former mayor of Philadelphia and 2006 Prize winner); writer and cultural anthropologist Mary Catherine Bateson (author of Composing a Further Life: The Age of Active Wisdom); civil rights leader and social innovator Robert Moses (founder of The Algebra Project); and bestselling author Martin Seligman (founder of the field of positive psychology).

"HIV/AIDS is not simply a medical condition, one that can be diagnosed and treated as a disease," Hochendoner says. "It is rooted in ignorance and stigma met with fierce prejudice and intolerance and spreads in the most vulnerable and indigent communities of women and children. Fighting HIV/AIDS is the new civil rights movement of this century."

The Purpose Prize, funded by The Atlantic Philanthropies and the John Templeton Foundation, is a program of Civic Ventures' Encore Careers campaign (www.encore.org), which aims to engage millions of baby boomers in encore careers combining social impact, personal meaning and continued income in the second half of life.

For more information, visit: www.encore.org/prize.

About Civic Ventures (www.encore.org)

Civic Ventures is a national think tank on boomers, work and social purpose.

About The Atlantic Philanthropies (www.atlanticphilanthropies.org)

The Atlantic Philanthropies are dedicated to bringing about lasting changes in the lives of disadvantaged and vulnerable people. Their work is aimed at ageing, disadvantaged children and youth, population health, and reconciliation and human rights.

About the John Templeton Foundation (www.templeton.org)

The John Templeton Foundation serves as a philanthropic catalyst for research and discoveries relating to what scientists and philosophers call the Big Questions. The Foundation supports work at the world's top universities in such fields as theoretical physics, cosmology, evolutionary biology, cognitive science and social science relating to love, forgiveness, creativity, purpose and the nature and origin of religious belief.

SOURCE The Philadelphia AIDS Consortium