Connecting Hearts Abroad (CHA) is Lilly's global service program. Over 1,500 employees serve as ambassadors and volunteer in communities with limited resources to improve health across Africa, Latin America, southeastern Europe and the U.S. The mission of CHA is to strengthen marginalized and underserved communities through sustainable service programs that address access and inequities in health care. Ambassadors in the program assist with health and community projects and return with insights that help Lilly become a better and more globally aware company.

A team of ambassadors from Lilly recently traveled to Monterrey, Mexico, where diabetes and obesity rates are spiking at an alarming rate. The team partnered with Clinicas de Azucar (Sugar Clinics), an organization that has developed a one-stop shop for patients who cannot afford proper diabetic care. At Clinicas de Azucar, patients receive A1C lab testing, glucose monitoring, nutritional consultation, and psychological support from experienced medical professionals.

During the trip, the Lilly team met a diabetic patient who invited them to her home, where she and her husband shared their emotional journey. She explained how she couldn’t understand why she was so tired all the time, and without Clinicas de Azucar, she would’ve waited seven (7) months for an appointment with the current health system. After meeting with the patient, the ambassadors’ goal in Monterrey became personal. Team Lilly came together to do what they do best, as said by Colonel Eli Lilly, “Take what you find here and make it better and better.” The ambassadors presented a business development plan to expand Clinicas de Azucar to other geographical areas in need, as well as a plan to improve the engagement of staff within the clinics.

Frances Gonzalez, a Lilly ambassador who participated in the program, returned from the trip feeling extraordinarily humbled and thankful for everything she says she takes for granted. “Professionally, I came back standing tall and proud that I work for a company that holds true to its mission,” she stated. “This experience will significantly impact how I present Lilly on college campuses as a recruiter. Our vision and mission are no longer a slide on my presentation- it’s now part of my journey at Lilly.”

To learn more about Lilly’s work in the communities it works in and around the globe, please visit our Giving Back page on LillyNow.