Society of Professional Journalists
Noelle Leavitt is a past president of the Colorado Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) — a non-profit media organization with roughly 10,000 members nationwide. The Colorado Pro Chapter consists of 150 professional and student members and 14 board chairs.
The organization's mission is to uphold and protect the basic principles of journalism and freedom of press through media advocacy in Washington D.C., fundraising and providing legal defense funds to journalists worldwide. Leavitt has been an SPJ member for six years, avidly attending national and regional conferences in cities throughout the U.S.
Prior to becoming the president in August 2008, Leavitt was programming director from 2006-2008, organizing journalism events including the Helen Verba Lecture Series, an educational series that featured well-known journalists across the nation. Leavitt was also the president of Metro State College's SPJ chapter her senior year of college.
Please visit, www.coloradospjpro.com.
Forget Me Not Foundation
Noelle Leavitt founded the Forget Me Not Foundation in December of 2006 in honor of her late Grandmother Mary Elizabeth Leavitt who died in a nursing home Feb. 16, 2006. The Forget Me Not foundation’s mission is to deliver donated flowers to nursing home residents who are often forgotten by society. We aspire to reach out to those living in long-term care facilities who rarely receive cards, gifts, or flowers.
Statistics show that roughly 70 percent of those 65 and older will need long-term care assistance throughout their life, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and not all residents have family to help them through the transition. Leavitt is currently trying to obtain a 501 (c) 3 nonprofit status for the organization.