Thomas Judd Care Center Events
Thomas Judd Care Center hosts and participates in events throughout the year to raise awareness of our work for community members living with HIV/AIDS and our prevention efforts. We hope you will join us!
Northern Lights 5K Fun Run
New Location • Same Fun • More Glow
Friday, September 11, 2026
8 - 10:30 pm
Grand Traverse County Civic Center
Pavilion Parking Lot, 1213 W Civic Center Dr., Traverse City MI 49684
New Location • Same Fun • More Glow
Lace up your sneakers and light up the night! Join us for an unforgettable evening at the Northern Lights 5K Fun Run, hosted by the Thomas Judd Care Center to raise awareness for HIV care and prevention resources across Northern Michigan.
Whether you're running or walking, this 5K course offers glowing fun, community spirit, and a chance to make a difference! This year's course is a flat, easy-to-follow route that’s perfect for runners, walkers, families, and all ages featuring three loops for more glow enjoyment.
Northern Michigan HIV Summit
Monday, September 28, 2026
9 am - 3 pm
Hagerty Center, Traverse City, or Virtually
Free registration | Lunch included | Free CEUs
Event Agenda
9 - 9:30 am | Check-In and Continental Breakfast
9:30 - 10 am | Welcome & Presentation of 2026 Excellence in Community Collaborations Award
10 - 11 am | Addiction and Access: Real-Life Barriers to Healthcare
A panel discussion, moderated by Munson Healthcare's Chief Marketing and Communications Officer Megan Brown. The panel will explore how addiction and compulsive behaviors can create barriers to accessing and staying engaged in healthcare. Featuring professionals and community members with lived experience, followed by audience Q&A.
11 am - 12 pm | Sexual Health Across the Lifespan: A Status-Neutral Approach to HIV Prevention and Care | Jason Zucker, MD
This presentation will explore how comprehensive, status-neutral HIV prevention and care can be integrated with affirming sexual healthcare across the lifespan.
12 - 1 pm | Lunch
1 - 3 pm | The Road Back: Understanding the Challenges of Reentry | Jeanne Marriott
This interactive exercise offers a firsthand look at the practical and systemic barriers people may encounter after incarceration - and how those challenges can disrupt access to healthcare, HIV services and other essential support.
About the Participants
Jason Zucker, MD, Assistant Professor of Medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases at Columbia University Irving Medical Center
Jason Zucker, MD, is Assistant Professor of Medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases at Columbia University Irving Medical Center, Principal Investigator and Co-Medical Director of the New York City STI Prevention Training Center, and Director of Project STAY, a program supporting youth. His presentation, “Thriving With HIV: The Essential Role of Sexual Health,” will explore the importance of comprehensive, status-neutral HIV prevention and sexual healthcare across the lifespan.
Dr. Zucker is dual-trained in adult and pediatric infectious diseases and provides care through the NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia Comprehensive Health Program Sexual Health Clinic. His research sits at the intersection of data science, behavioral science, and implementation science, with a focus on improving engagement across the sexual health care continuum.
Jeanne Marriott, Project Associate at the Michigan Center for Rural Health
Jeanne Marriott is a Project Associate at the Michigan Center for Rural Health (MCRH). She holds a Bachelor of Science from Central Michigan University and has worked in nonprofit, corporate and healthcare settings, with experience in marketing, development, provider relations and project management. In 2024, through MCRH’s Northern Michigan Opioid Response Consortium (NMORC), her team learned about jail release simulations and identified a receptive audience in northern Lower Michigan. Since that spring, the team has facilitated “Community Reentry Simulations” from Marquette to Manistee and plans to continue offering the program to help communities better understand the barriers and service gaps, including healthcare, people face as they reenter society after incarceration.
Megan Brown, Chief Marketing & Communications Officer, Munson Healthcare
Megan Brown is Chief Marketing and Communications Officer for Munson Healthcare. She oversees all communications, marketing and community health programs – including the Thomas Judd Care Center – for Northern Michigan’s largest healthcare system. Before joining Munson Healthcare, Brown was Executive Director of Corporate Communications at Michigan’s largest utility company, Consumers Energy. Earlier in her career, she served as Deputy Press Secretary & spokeswoman to former Governor Jennifer M. Granholm. She holds a B.A. from Michigan State University and an MBA from The University of Michigan. Megan serves on the Northwest Michigan Infant Mental Health Board of Directors; Great Lakes Children’s Museum Board of Directors and is past-President of the Traverse City Central Neighborhood Association. She was also previously named to the ‘40 under 40’ list of the Traverse City Business News. Megan lives in Traverse City, MI with her husband and two young sons.