written by Dominique Huff
Dr. Henry Washington III is standing on the legacy of the late Henry Washington Jr. and Henry Washington Sr., two men in his life who not only shared a namesake but also a prostate cancer diagnosis.
Unlike the other two Washingtons, Washington III is a survivor of the disease that disproportionately impacts black men.
In 2014, he was diagnosed with prostate cancer at the age of 39 and admitted to being checked twice yearly at the behest of his late father, who succumbed to it and gave him a heads-up that resulted in his life being saved.
“I was the lone survivor because I could watch my father, and he educated me on how and when to get checked,” he said. “It was a process of learning and getting checked early. My journey is to educate other men to get checked early.”
The Zero Cancer Initiative reports black men are much more likely to develop prostate cancer. One in six black men will develop prostate cancer in his lifetime–compared to one in eight men overall. Black men are 1.7 times more likely to be diagnosed with–and 2.1 times more likely to die from prostate cancer than white men.
“God gave me my purpose while I was lying on that bed healing and recovering,” he called. “My father instilled values in me that I wanted to ensure were instilled in other men and boys.”
From there, the HW3 Foundation was established as a dedicated nonprofit organization committed to promoting healthy lifestyles among men and empowering the youth in the Metro Atlanta area. By utilizing trained and qualified mentors and the village concept, the foundation aims to increase the mental and physical well-being of the community’s youth.
The HW3 Foundation has two projects—HW3 Men’s Prostate Cancer Health Awareness and Divine Leadership Mentoring Program (Go Get Our Boys and Girls).
To help raise prostate cancer awareness in Metro Atlanta, the HW3 Foundation is implementing awareness and advocacy campaigns and education programs for the Atlanta community, health professionals, and government.
Washington wants to educate the youth, bring parents back into the church, and ensure all families are spiritually based.
“I want the youth to keep pushing and never quit,” he said. “The primary thing here is to ensure these youth can focus on who they are as individuals first, grow from there, and build a team concept at that point and understand who they are.”
With HW3’s youth empowerment, the youth are given a softer and gentler version of Scared Straight centered on physical fitness, positive peer pressure, being a leader, taking accountability, and being respectful to each other and others.
“We don’t yell and scream, but we do mean business by challenging them to make sure they are contributing to the team's efforts and testing their limits to raise the bar,” he explained.
The values of the HW3 Foundation are loyalty, respect, selfless service, honor, integrity, personal courage, and leadership.
As a military veteran, Washington brings these concepts to youth ages 9 to 19.
Even though he’s not a biological father, he has mentored 4,033 youth since 2015 and is proud that all except two are on the path to greatness.
“Many youth consider me their father and have enhanced their greatness through our program. While two fell off the wagon, they will be welcomed back with open arms when they reappear, and we will get them on the right path,” he said. “The HW3 values are ones that all of these young people take with them wherever they go, from personal to business to community.”
For adults, Washington has his book American Hero: A Soldier's Story from Combat to Cancer, which gives anyone looking to navigate a quarter-life crisis or mid-life crisis a roadmap to success using faith, wisdom, and courage.
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