Lena Frances Edwards
Lena Frances Edwards (1900-1986) was a New Jersey physician who was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
She graduated Howard University Medical School in 1924, an started her medical practice in Jersey City, New Jersey in 1925 within the immigrant community of Hudson County, New Jersey. She advocated natural childbirth, and it took years before she was admitted to the residency in obstetrics and gynecology at Margaret Hague Hospital in Jersey City. She taught obstetrics at Howard University Medical School, and she was the medical adviser to the National Association of Colored Women's Clubs, and volunteered at a mission for Mexican migrant workers in Texas. Her service was recognized by Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964 and she was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom. She was awarded the Poverello Medal in 1967.