American Lung Association

The American Lung Association is a United States voluntary health organization devoted to improving lung health and preventing lung disease. Its work combines public education, policy advocacy, research support, community programs, and fundraising. Although its present identity covers a broad range of respiratory-health issues, the organization originated in the early twentieth-century campaign against tuberculosis, at a time when tuberculosis was a leading public-health concern in the United States. The association was established in 1904 as the National Association for the Study and Prevention of Tuberculosis. Its founding group included physicians and public-health advocates Edward Livingston Trudeau, Robert Hall Babcock, Henry Martyn Hall, Lawrence Flick, and S. Adolphus Knopf. Flick had already helped create the Pennsylvania Society for the Prevention of Tuberculosis in 1892, an earlier organization dedicated to tuberculosis prevention. The new national body sought to coordinate education, prevention, treatment support, and public action against the disease. One of the association's most enduring public initiatives began in 1907 with the Christmas Seals campaign. Emily Bissell, a Red Cross volunteer, designed holiday seals that could be purchased for a small amount at post offices. The first campaign was intended to raise money for a tuberculosis sanatorium in Delaware, but it generated substantially more support than the immediate target required. Christmas Seals subsequently became an annual fundraising and awareness tradition associated with tuberculosis, respiratory disease, and lung-health work. The organization changed its name as its mission expanded. In 1918 it became the National Tuberculosis Association. In 1968 it adopted the name National Tuberculosis and Respiratory Disease Association, reflecting a broader concern with respiratory illness beyond tuberculosis. In 1973 it became the American Lung Association. Under that name it developed a national profile in lung-health education, tobacco-control advocacy, air-quality policy, disease prevention, research, and community-based activities. Environmental health and clean-air policy have been important parts of the association's advocacy. The organization has defended the Clean Air Act and has used public education and policy engagement to emphasize the health effects of air pollution, particulate matter, and polluted indoor and outdoor environments. Its 2010 national tagline, 'Fighting for Air,' presented the organization as an advocate not only for people living with lung disease but also for cleaner air in communities and public spaces. The association is funded through individual contributions, corporate and foundation support, government agency grants, and event-based fundraising. In addition to Christmas Seals, fundraising activities have included bicycle rides such as the Trek Across Maine and the Lake Tour Bike Trek, the Fight for Air Climb, and Run the Rocks. These activities support the association's national and state-level programs. The Trek Across Maine, established as an annual cycling event, has been reported as raising more than $24 million since 1985. The American Lung Association also develops educational and community initiatives. In October 2018 it introduced Yoga Power, a school-based program intended to build awareness of lung health among children at Woodward Elementary School in Delaware, Ohio. The organization has also used its public platform to communicate about respiratory disease, tobacco, air quality, and prevention. Its historical emblem is a modified Cross of Lorraine, a symbol that became associated with the international campaign against tuberculosis. The emblem was traditionally red and was changed to blue in 2021. The organization remains active as a U.S. lung-health nonprofit, although detailed current leadership, headquarters, and financial information is not established by the supplied reference material.

The American Lung Association traces its origins to the organized fight against tuberculosis in the United States. In 1892, Lawrence Flick founded the Pennsylvania Society for the Prevention of Tuberculosis, an early organization devoted specifically to tuberculosis prevention. In 1904, Edward Livingston Trudeau, Robert Hall Babcock, Henry Martyn Hall, Lawrence Flick, and S. Adolphus Knopf helped establish the National Association for the Study and Prevention of Tuberculosis. The new national body coordinated education, advocacy, prevention work, and support for institutions treating tuberculosis. The association's most recognizable early fundraising device was the Christmas Seals campaign. In 1907, Red Cross volunteer Emily Bissell designed small holiday seals and sold them through post offices to support a tuberculosis sanatorium in Delaware. The response exceeded the immediate fundraising requirement by more than tenfold. The campaign became an annual tradition and helped connect public donations with tuberculosis awareness and respiratory-health work. The organization changed its name several times as its public-health remit broadened. In 1918, the National Association for the Study and Prevention of Tuberculosis became the National Tuberculosis Association. During the following decades, it developed a national network and expanded its role in public education, fundraising, and disease prevention. In 1968, the organization adopted the name National Tuberculosis and Respiratory Disease Association, acknowledging that respiratory illness had become a major part of its work beyond tuberculosis alone. In 1973, it adopted the name American Lung Association. The association also developed a strong policy role. It became an advocate for clean-air protections and a defender of the Clean Air Act. Its work increasingly addressed air pollution, particulate matter, tobacco-related disease, and the prevention and management of respiratory illness. The 2010 introduction of the 'Fighting for Air' tagline emphasized the connection between individual lung health and the quality of the air people breathe in homes, workplaces, public spaces, and communities. Leadership and representation have also formed part of the organization's institutional history. Ethelene Crockett became president in 1978, described in the supplied historical account as the first woman and first African-American woman to hold that position. Earlier notable participants included honorary vice presidents Grover Cleveland and Theodore Roosevelt, as well as physicians and public-health figures such as Robert Hall Babcock, Sir William Osler, and Edward R. Baldwin. Fundraising remains central to the association's operating model. It receives support from individual donors, corporations, foundations, and government agency grants. In addition to Christmas Seals, its fundraising portfolio has included the Trek Across Maine, the Lake Tour Bike Trek in Illinois, Fight for Air Climb events, and Run the Rocks. The Trek Across Maine has reportedly generated more than $24 million since 1985. These events support both national activity and state-level lung associations. The modern organization combines advocacy with education and community programming. In 2018 it launched Yoga Power, a school-based initiative at Woodward Elementary School in Delaware, Ohio, intended to teach children about the importance of lung health. Its visual identity is based on a modified Cross of Lorraine, a symbol associated with the international tuberculosis campaign since the early twentieth century. The emblem was red for much of the organization's history and changed to blue in 2021. The American Lung Association continues to operate as a U.S. nonprofit focused on lung health, respiratory disease prevention, research, education, and cleaner air.

• 2021

  Logo color changed

  [1]American Lung Associationen.wikipedia.org

  The Cross of Lorraine logo changed from its traditional red color to blue.

• 2018

  Yoga Power introduced in a school

  [1]American Lung Associationen.wikipedia.org

  The association launched a school-based lung-health awareness initiative at Woodward Elementary School in Delaware, Ohio.

• 2010

  Fighting for Air tagline introduced

  [1]American Lung Associationen.wikipedia.org

  A national tagline was introduced to highlight the association's cleaner-air advocacy and lung-health mission.

• 1978

  Ethelene Crockett becomes president

  [1]American Lung Associationen.wikipedia.org

  Ethelene Crockett became the first woman and first African-American woman to serve as the organization's president.

• 1973

  Current name adopted

  [1]American Lung Associationen.wikipedia.org

  The organization became the American Lung Association.

• 1968

  Respiratory disease added to organizational name

  [1]American Lung Associationen.wikipedia.org

  The National Tuberculosis Association became the National Tuberculosis and Respiratory Disease Association.

• 1918

  Renamed National Tuberculosis Association

  [1]American Lung Associationen.wikipedia.org

  The organization adopted the National Tuberculosis Association name.

• 1913

  Double-barred cross formally adopted

  [1]American Lung Associationen.wikipedia.org

  At the association's ninth annual meeting, members formally adopted the double red cross as a symbol of the tuberculosis campaign.

• 1907

  Christmas Seals launched

  [1]American Lung Associationen.wikipedia.org

  Emily Bissell began selling holiday seals to raise funds for tuberculosis treatment and prevention.

• 1904

  National organization established

  [1]American Lung Associationen.wikipedia.org

  The National Association for the Study and Prevention of Tuberculosis was founded by a group of physicians and public-health advocates.

• 1892

  Pennsylvania tuberculosis-prevention society founded

  [1]American Lung Associationen.wikipedia.org

  Lawrence Flick founded the Pennsylvania Society for the Prevention of Tuberculosis, an important predecessor in organized U.S. tuberculosis prevention.

A national public-health and advocacy nonprofit focused on lung disease prevention, respiratory-health education, cleaner air, research, and support for affected communities.

• Fundraising and public awareness campaign · 1907

  Christmas Seals

  Christmas Seals are small decorative seals sold to raise money and awareness for tuberculosis, respiratory disease, and lung-health programs. The American Lung Association's tradition began in 1907 when Emily Bissell used holiday seals to support a tuberculosis sanatorium in Delaware. The campaign became one of the organization's longest-running public fundraising mechanisms.

• Fundraising event

  Fight for Air Climb

  Fight for Air Climb is a stair-climbing fundraising event associated with the American Lung Association. Participants raise donations while completing a vertical challenge, connecting physical activity and public participation with support for lung-health education, advocacy, and research.

• Fundraising event · 1985

  Trek Across Maine

  Trek Across Maine is an annual bicycle ride supporting the American Lung Association. It is one of the association's best-known endurance fundraising events and has been reported as raising more than $24 million since 1985.

• Fundraising event

  Lake Tour Bike Trek

  Lake Tour Bike Trek is an annual bicycle fundraiser held in Illinois, with donations directed to the American Lung Association of Illinois. It extends the association's community fundraising model into regional cycling events.

• Fundraising event

  Run the Rocks

  Run the Rocks is an annual autumn fundraising event supporting the association's lung-health work. It is part of a broader portfolio of participatory events that raise money while increasing public engagement with respiratory-health issues.

• School-based education program · 2018

  Yoga Power

  Yoga Power is a school-based initiative designed to increase children's awareness of lung health. The American Lung Association launched the program in October 2018 at Woodward Elementary School in Delaware, Ohio.

• 2018Yoga Power

  United States

  A school-based initiative launched at Woodward Elementary School in Delaware, Ohio, to build awareness of the importance of lung health.

  Outcome. Introduced the association's lung-health education work in a school setting.

  Source
• 2010Fighting for Air

  United States

  The organization introduced a national tagline emphasizing cleaner air, reduced particulate pollution, and the connection between environmental conditions and respiratory health.

  Outcome. Became the association's national advocacy tagline.

  Source
• 1907Christmas Seals

  United States

  A holiday-seal fundraising campaign began to support a tuberculosis sanatorium and evolved into a recurring public-awareness and donation program for tuberculosis and lung-health work.

  Outcome. Established a long-running fundraising tradition.

  Source
• Trek Across Maine

  Maine · United States

  An annual bicycle fundraiser supporting the American Lung Association and its lung-health programs.

  Outcome. Reported to have raised more than $24 million since 1985.

  Source
• Fight for Air Climb

  United States

  A spring stair-climbing fundraising event that engages participants in supporting lung-health programs.

  Source

• 2021

  Changed the Cross of Lorraine logo colorOther

  Background

  The organization updated a visual symbol historically associated with its tuberculosis-fighting origins.

  Action taken

  Changed the emblem color from red to blue.

  Aftermath

  The Cross of Lorraine remained part of the organization's visual identity in updated form.

  Source

• 1973

  Adopted the American Lung Association nameStrategy

  Background

  The organization sought a name reflecting its broad lung-health and respiratory-disease mission.

  Action taken

  Changed its name from the National Tuberculosis and Respiratory Disease Association to the American Lung Association.

  Aftermath

  The current name became the basis for its national identity in advocacy, education, research, and fundraising.

  Source

• 1968

  Expanded the name to include respiratory diseaseStrategy

  Background

  The association's work had expanded beyond tuberculosis to encompass a wider range of respiratory illnesses.

  Action taken

  Adopted the National Tuberculosis and Respiratory Disease Association name.

  Aftermath

  The broader identity preceded adoption of the American Lung Association name in 1973.

  Source

• 1918

  Adopted the National Tuberculosis Association nameStrategy

  Background

  The organization revised its name as its national tuberculosis-prevention role became more established.

  Action taken

  Rebranded from the National Association for the Study and Prevention of Tuberculosis.

  Aftermath

  The new name was used until the organization broadened its remit further.

  Source

1. 1American Lung Associationen.wikipedia.org
2. 2American Lung Association official websitelung.org