Date Time
A ‘heart’ for health, justice and helping others
Social justice has been an integral part of Nellie Garlow’s life from an early age. Growing up in Silver Spring, Maryland, just a short drive from the National Mall, Garlow’s childhood is sprinkled with memories of protesting at the nation’s capital.
“One of my earliest activism memories is protesting against mass shootings in America at the Million Mom March [held when Garlow was 8], which I attended with three generations of women in my family,” she says, noting the lasting importance her family placed on civic engagement.
Garlow was raised in an environment where volunteerism, activism, healthy eating and wellness were encouraged and underscored by her parents’ professions her father worked as a lawyer for the Environmental Protection Agency and her mother was a nurse practitioner. As an adult, those experiences and values have served as touchstones for Garlow as she navigates opportunities as a maste