Northwell Health celebrates Pride Month with our Expressions BERG

We at Northwell Health believe we’re made stronger by embracing the individual backgrounds and experiences of all our team members. Our Expressions BERG (business employee resource group) is a group of Northwell team members who are dedicated to a culture of inclusion and advocacy throughout Northwell to support the LGBTQIA+ community. In celebration of Pride Month, we’ve excitedly hosted programs and participated in events for our LGBTQIA+ team members to promote an inclusive and supportive environment.

Teri Manno is a co-chair of the Expressions BERG and provides support to LGBTQIA+ team members just as she received support to grow her career from administrative manager to her current role as vice president of talent acquisition in her 16 years at Northwell. “The Expressions BERG has helped me remain true to who I am and given me a space to feel genuinely accepted,” says Teri. Teri collaborates with her fellow co-chairs: Jared Olivera (community relations program manager), Edward Fraser (vice president, community relations), Kevin Beiner (senior vice president, regional executive director at Syosset Hospital), Allison Asante (supervisor of gynecologic oncology, advanced clinical providers at Lenox Hill Hospital) and Gio Giampietro (IT&S project manager, digital monitoring & telehealth services). Together they help provide a forum where our Health Raisers who identify as LGBTQIA+ can freely be themselves, meet and network with others who share similar life experiences, and provide the support needed both to celebrate pride or coming out.

“For some LGBTQIA+ individuals, it is a struggle to feel a part of a community of their peers. It can be very isolating. The Expressions BERG provides our members with that sense of community and belonging that is so critically important for those who might feel alone, especially for those who are not fully out to those around them,” says Teri.

Northwell’s Expressions BERG participated in several events throughout the month of June to celebrate Pride Month in our community. From Babylon Village Pride and Westchester Pride to NYC Pride and more, we are honored to be a part of these celebrations each year so we can continue raising health for all.