Posted on May 7, 2004 at 9:00 a.m.

Dianne Mooney, of Birmingham, Ala., has been named the 2004 Alabama Public Health Hero by the School of Public Health at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) in recognition of her efforts to improve and protect the health of Alabamians. The award -- a plaque and $1,000 – will be presented to Mooney during the school’s honors convocation to be held at 10 a.m. on May 7 at the Birmingham Museum of Art.

“She is an accomplished leader who has devoted much of her personal life to addressing and improving the health and social concerns of women in her community and throughout the country,” said Dr. Max Michael, dean of the School of Public Health at UAB. “She is a true public health hero, and it is a privilege to recognize her with this honor.”

Mooney, founder of Southern Living at HOME, is a distinguished business leader credited with the creation and implementation of numerous successful business ventures. However, it is her passion for helping women reach their potential that earned her this year’s Public Health Hero award.

Through the Women’s Fund of Greater Birmingham, Mooney became involved with Cut It Out, a statewide program that calls on salon professionals in the fight against domestic abuse. She envisioned a national program and worked to help create a partnership between Southern Living At HOME, Clairol Professional and the National Cosmetology Association – the Salons Against Domestic Abuse Fund. The program supports awareness of domestic abuse and training salon professionals to recognize warning signs and safely refer clients to local resources.

Another highlight of Mooney’s community commitment is her service on the advisory board of a women’s initiative called MOMENTUM, sponsored by the YWCA of Birmingham. In this role, Mooney works to inspire, prepare and empower women to assume higher levels of leadership in business and in the community.

She has served on the board of directors for The Crisis Center; Oasis, A Women’s Counseling Center; the Women’s Fund of Greater Birmingham; the Alabama Humanities Foundation; and the Norton Board at Birmingham-Southern College.

Among her numerous honors, she received the Time Inc. President’s Award in 1995 and was recently tapped as one of Birmingham’s Top Women Leaders by Birmingham Magazine.

She attended college at the Katharine Gibbs School and Cornell University, both in New York.