Every year, we ask our 70,000+ associates to consider nominating an exceptional colleague who is making a lasting impact on those around them, both at work and outside of work.

The Jeffrey Sherman Life-Changers Award program launched in 2016 and is named in honor of former BD EVP and General Counsel, Jeffrey Sherman, who passed away following a brave 10-month battle with pancreatic cancer.

The annual Life-Changers awards are one of our favorite traditions at BD – because these prestigious awards honor “the best of the best” within our organization. This year, we received 70 nominations from our employees around the world and awarded four winners.

Meet 2021 Jeffrey Sherman Life-Changers Award winner, Judy LaJoie, who is the Director of Medical Affairs for Medication Delivery Solutions in Franklin Lakes, NJ.

At BD, Judy is a well-respected strategic collaborator across our organization. Those on her team say she is selflessly invested in their growth, advancement and success. Judy has been a nurse for nearly 30 years, which gives her a unique perspective in the work she does every day – she knows that there is a patient at the end of every device and solution we make. Judy was recently awarded within BD for her efforts to deliver vascular access-related assessments that reached over 30,000 clinicians and ultimately supported the practice improvement of more than 200,000 nurses every year.

Outside of BD, Judy actively serves and raises funds for nine non-profit organizations. She is the single largest individual fundraiser for each year’s Jersey Shore Bladder Cancer Walk; collects money and candy donations for Camp Happy Times, a week-long sleepaway camp for children with cancer; prepares holiday diners and food baskets for mothers and children living in the Oasis Center for Women & Children, and also serves several other local non-profit organizations including Snack NYC, the Steven Siller Tunnel to Towers Foundation,  the Captain Timothy Stackpole Foundation, Alzheimer’s New Jersey, Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation and the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.   

Judy is also an author of a children’s book that helps patients who are diagnosed with juvenile diabetes to understand and come to terms with their diagnosis.

Judy actively seeks opportunity to use her medical training to serve others. Most recently, when the New Jersey Medical Reserve Corp (MRC) sent out an urgent request for members of the nursing community to assist with vaccinating millions of residents to aid in the fight against COVID-19, Judy didn’t’ hesitate to volunteer, and inspire other team members to join their local MRC teams. Since COVID-19 vaccines first became available, she has served at one of her local vaccination centers, helping to protect hundreds of thousands of people from the impact of the pandemic.

We at BD congratulate Judy on this very special honor and thank her for her hard work. For more 2021 Life Changer Award stories like Judy’s, visit the BD Blog.