Longtime Go Red emcee, health reporter to receive award at 2024 Luncheon

She is a health coach with a doctorate degree in bioethics; an Emmy Award-winning journalist who continues to educate the public about ways to stay healthy; a frequent keynote speaker; an actor and singer; and a longtime emcee of the Go Red for Women Luncheon in the Capital Region.

Benita Zahn, DPS, MS, NBC-HWC

To honor her work, the American Heart Association, a global force for a world of longer, healthier lives, will present the Jane Golub Crystal Heart Award to Benita Zahn, DPS-Bioethics, NBC-HWC at the 2024 Capital Region Go Red for Women Luncheon on Friday, Nov. 8, at the Albany Capital Center.

Named for the late Jane Golub, a fierce supporter of the Go Red movement, the award honors a woman who has made a significant investment in the cardiovascular health of women in the Capital Region and has gone above and beyond in raising awareness about heart disease in women and sharing the mission of the Go Red for Women movement.

“Benita’s  devotion to the service of others, demonstrated by  her tireless work in the healthcare arena as a reporter with WNYT and WMHT, a writer, sought-after speaker and a health coach emulates the values that Jane Golub lived her life by,” said Anne Saile, chair of the 204 Go Red for Women Luncheon, and chair of the inaugural Luncheon 20 years ago. “Benita’s work has an immeasurable impact on the health of everyone in her reach. I am delighted she is being recognized with the prestigious Jane Golub Crystal Heart Award.” 

“Receiving this award makes my heart soar,” Zahn said. “The work that the American Heart Association does is so critical to our awareness of how to keep our hearts healthy, and to recognize when there’s a potential for a problem. Knowing that there could be trouble and acting is key to saving lives, particularly for women, because our symptoms are not necessarily the classic ‘elephant on the chest’ pains.”

Zahn entered college as a biology major, thinking she would go into immunological research.

“Biology, health, and empowering people have always been key to my life journey,” Zahn said. When she moved into journalism, her interest in health stayed with her.

“People want to be healthy, but often don’t know how,” she said. “I saw firsthand that people don’t always have the information that they want or need. Asking for that information can also be difficult.”

During her time at WNYT and WMHT, Zahn completed a master’s degree and doctorate of professional studies in bioethics at the Alden March Institute of Bioethics at Albany Medical College, a member of the Albany Med Health System.

“I’m always asking questions,” she said of why she pursued the higher degrees. “Also, education, education, education. It opens doors and it opens your mind. It’s a tough world in general, and anything that becomes value added in one’s life is good.”

Today, Zahn is a nationally certified health coach in her own practice, B Your Best with Benita, located at Capital Cardiology in Albany.

“Sometimes, there’s so much information, it can be confusing,” she said. “If I can help people wade through the information and the messaging, and help and encourage them to focus on what will serve them, that’s a good day’s work.”

Zahn emphasized that, as a health coach, she knows and respects that everyone’s journey is different.

“You create the road that you want to travel,” she said. “I help make it clear and help you stay on the road. I don’t give a prescription; I ask a lot of questions that help you distill what’s important in your life. I support you and will cheer you on. I tell clients that my office is a ‘no pejoratives’ zone.”

Zahn is from Jericho, Long Island, and a graduate of SUNY Oswego. She has lived in the Capital Region for more than 35 years.

She and her husband, Bob Stulmaker, celebrated their 25th anniversary this year. She is appearing in the long-running “Shear Madness” at the Majestic Theater through October 20 and will be performing with The Singing Anchors in November and December at various locations in the Capital Region.

For information about the 2024 Capital Region Go Red for Women Luncheon, visit www.heart.org/GoRed518.

Past recipients of the Jane Golub Crystal Heart Award include:

Theresa Petrone Butts

Maria Decker

Kathy Lanni

Joy Lucas, DVM

Suzie Mookherjee, M.D.