After five days of bold ideas, meaningful connections, and conversations about the future of life sciences, OneWe Reach’s 10th Annual Conference brought the focus to something deeply personal: the lives we’re working to improve, including our own.
The final day of OneWe Reach’s 10th Annual Conference took attendees on a remarkable journey, beginning with an unfiltered conversation about the forces reshaping biopharma and moving into candid discussions about longevity, brain health, personal wellness, and the courage to make different choices.
There was laughter. There were uncomfortable truths. There were moments that made people stop and reflect. And as the conference drew to a close, an evening of recognition and generosity offered a fitting reminder of what ten years of OneWe Reach has made possible.
The Real: Navigating an Industry in Motion
The morning began with The Real: A Chat About Industry Trends, a lively, living-room-style conversation moderated by OneWe Reach Founder and President Dr. Charlotte Jones-Burton.
The premise was simple: Bring together leaders from across the healthcare ecosystem, put three major industry disruptions on the table, and see where the conversation goes.
Those disruptions? Patent cliffs, AI, and geopolitical volatility. The discussion quickly revealed how interconnected those forces have become.
Fernando Salinas of Bristol Myers Squibb and Imara Charles of Immunovant explored how AI is reshaping the workforce, compressing timelines, and creating new expectations for talent. Their perspectives reinforced the need for learning agility, enterprise thinking, and the human judgment required to navigate technological change.
Diane Gomez-Thinnes challenged traditional thinking about pharmaceutical innovation, asking whether the future of a therapy might extend beyond the molecule itself through the integration of digital technology and data.
Meanwhile, Courtney Christian of PhRMA, Amber Gilbert of Lumanity, and Dr. Chimene Liburd of D.C. Medicaid brought the real-world consequences of policy, pricing, and access decisions into sharper focus.
Perhaps one of the most thought-provoking discussions came when Dr. Yele Aluko explored the growing divide between how healthcare executives communicate and where consumers actually seek health information.
The conversation ultimately raised a question every life sciences organization should be asking: Are we adapting quickly enough to the changing expectations of the people we’re here to serve?
It was an energizing reminder that navigating the future requires looking beyond our individual roles and understanding how decisions ripple throughout the entire healthcare ecosystem.
Reclaiming Our Health, One Choice at a Time
From there, the conference shifted gears, inviting attendees to think about longevity through a much more personal lens.
During Defining Longevity, Lifespan, and Healthspan, psychotherapist Charryse Johnson and E2M Premium CEO Jeff Witherspoon shared the experiences that shaped their commitment to helping people live healthier lives. Johnson spoke about losing her mother to cancer at 53. Witherspoon reflected on his father’s debilitating stroke and the profound impact it had on his entire family.
Their stories grounded the conversation in a simple reality: Our health influences how fully we can participate in the lives of the people we love. Together, they explored the importance of consistent habits, preventive care, emotional wellness, and finding a deeper motivation for staying healthy.
Johnson offered a memorable reminder: “Work your window.”
Rather than waiting for a diagnosis or crisis to make health a priority, the conversation encouraged attendees to take advantage of opportunities to understand their risks and make informed choices today. It was a perspective that resonated with an audience accustomed to managing demanding careers while balancing responsibilities at home.
What Lies Beneath the Mask?
The morning’s next experience made those ideas impossible to keep at arm’s length.
In The Mask We Wear, attendees were handed the stories of fictional individuals, each navigating their own combination of professional responsibilities, personal circumstances, and health challenges. A young teacher planning a family. A nonprofit leader who cared for everyone but herself. A successful executive whose outward accomplishments concealed significant health risks.
Through an interactive exercise led by Dr. Jones-Burton and OneWe Reach’s Delvin Burton, participants examined each person’s Brain Care Score and Health Literacy Score, exploring the difference between appearing healthy, understanding health information, and putting that knowledge into practice.
Dr. Ray Feaster of Novant Health helped attendees understand important health measurements, while Dana Spencer of Genentech challenged the room to think differently about health literacy. The exercise also highlighted an important responsibility for the healthcare industry: Making health information understandable and useful is just as important as making it available.
Then came a revealing moment: When attendees were asked whether they recognized aspects of themselves in their assigned characters, hands went up across the room. The fictional stories suddenly felt familiar. The experience reminded everyone that professional success, education, and outward appearances reveal only part of a person’s health story.
And sometimes, the person behind the mask is us.
No Apologies: Living a Life That Actually Fits
The day’s reflections on wellness took another meaningful turn during No Apologies, an intimate conversation between Dr. Jones-Burton and author, philanthropist, realtor, and community leader Charlie Lewis, Jr.
Their connection began with a chance encounter on Martha’s Vineyard just months earlier, a story that felt especially appropriate for a conference celebrating the power of relationships. Lewis brought humor, candor, and a refreshing perspective on success. He spoke about learning to organize his life around the causes and commitments that matter most to him, including education, arts and culture, and community advocacy.
And he challenged a familiar assumption about professional achievement: “Hard work does not mean advancement.”
For a room filled with high-performing professionals, the message landed.
Lewis discussed the importance of personal alignment, establishing boundaries, protecting time for rest, and having the courage to leave environments that no longer support the life we want. When asked what he now demands of himself, his answer was wonderfully simple: “The ability to say no.”
It was a timely reminder that meaningful achievement and personal well-being should reinforce one another.
When Storytelling Makes Us See Things Differently
Few moments were as emotionally powerful as the special screening of Old Grey Mare, a psychological thriller presented by Tyler Perry Studios. The film confronted the realities of dementia through an unexpected and deeply unsettling story.
Facilitated by Devaris Davis of the Brain Health Initiative, the discussion that followed explored the personal experiences behind the film and the difficulty families sometimes face in recognizing cognitive decline in people they love. The filmmaker shared how his grandmother’s changing behavior inspired the story, including the painful realization that someone who had once seemed capable of anything was beginning to experience significant memory challenges.
The film’s emotional impact carried into the audience discussion, where attendees shared personal experiences with dementia, caregiving, and the cultural expectations that can make sensitive family conversations difficult. It was a powerful demonstration of how storytelling can reach people in ways that traditional health education sometimes cannot.
The message was clear: Pay attention. Ask questions. Have the conversations that matter.
Sometimes a story stays with us because it changes what we’re willing to see.
The Power in the Pause: Changing the Conversation Around Menopause
The day also featured The Power in the Pause, an energetic and informative experience sponsored by the Black Women’s Health Imperative.
With an engaging mix of medical expertise, humor, audience participation, and candid discussion, the session explored menopause as a significant health transition deserving greater awareness, research, and support.
Following opening remarks from BWHI President and CEO Joy D. Calloway, radio personality Olympia D. Godbee led conversations with experts including Dr. Mia Cowan, Dr. Arianna Sholes-Douglas, Dr. Sheila Payton, and Charryse Johnson. The panel tackled topics ranging from hormone therapy and commonly overlooked symptoms to bone health, sexual wellness, mental health, and the importance of finding knowledgeable healthcare providers.
At one point, Dr. Payton had the audience on its feet for an unforgettable demonstration of movement and bone health, proving that important health education can also be fun. Johnson later brought the conversation inward, encouraging women to recognize the cumulative toll of stress and reconsider the expectations they place on themselves.
Her words captured the spirit of the session: “Just because you can doesn’t always mean that you should.”
The experience reinforced the importance of informed self-advocacy and compassionate, individualized care. It also concluded with recognition of Olympia D. Godbee and Dr. Malicia Whit-Glover for their contributions to community health.
An Evening of Impact, Celebration, and Generosity
The celebration continued with the 10th Annual OneWe Reach Industry Impact Awards & Casino Royale Fundraiser, a signature evening honoring the people and organizations advancing healthcare through leadership, collaboration, innovation, and service.
Against an elegant backdrop of celebration, guests came together for dinner, awards, and meaningful connections, recognizing the remarkable contributions being made across the healthcare ecosystem. But the evening was also about investing in what comes next.
One of the evening’s most significant moments was the presentation of a $300,000 gift from Bristol Myers Squibb to the OneWe Reach Foundation, representing a meaningful investment in the organization’s future. The celebration also included $5,000 contributions to YBLA and Ronald McDonald House, along with a $2,500 award to Brittney Combest, a member of OneWe Reach’s 2026 Distinguished Scholars cohort. These contributions reflected the spirit of the evening: celebrating excellence while supporting the programs, partnerships, and emerging talent that will shape the next generation of healthcare leadership.
The OneWe Reach Foundation Distinguished Scholars Program is one example of that ongoing commitment, recognizing promising future leaders in life sciences and healthcare innovation. For an organization marking its tenth anniversary, the evening was both a celebration of how far the community has come and a meaningful investment in the possibilities ahead.
Ten Years of Connection. A Future of Possibility.
As the conference drew to a close, the final day’s conversations revealed something important about the work ahead:
- We began by examining the enormous forces reshaping the biopharmaceutical industry.
- We explored what it means to live longer, understand our health, protect our well-being, and recognize the needs of those around us.
- And we ended by celebrating the people and partnerships whose contributions are helping move that work forward.
Across every session, one idea connected the day: Progress becomes meaningful when it reaches people.
For ten years, OneWe Reach has brought together professionals who believe in the power of connection, courageous conversations, and collective action. The 10th Annual Conference was a powerful reflection of that commitment, filled with fresh perspectives, genuine relationships, and renewed energy for the future.
To our speakers, partners, sponsors, members, volunteers, and everyone who made the past ten years possible: THANK YOU for being part of this milestone. Here’s to the next decade of reaching further, together!
