Downwinder’s Advocate
During the Cold War era in the 1950s and the 1960s, the U.S. government conducted above- and below-ground nuclear testing in the southern Nevada desert. Prevailing winds carried nuclear contaminated fallout throughout parts of Northern Arizona and parts of the western United States; residents living in the affected areas during that time were designated as “Downwinders” and are considered at risk for 19 types of cancer.
Arizona native and longtime Prescott resident, Sherrie has experienced the effects of exposure, losing both her father, Ken Wayman, and her husband, John Hanna Sr., to cancers linked to radiation exposure. Herself a Downwinder, Sherrie has made it her top priority to inform others of the risks, compensation benefits and cancer screenings available through the U.S. government’s Radiation Exposure Act of 1990.
As a Downwinders’ advocate, she has traveled throughout Arizona, Nevada and Utah gaining support for Downwinders’ bills currently in the United States Congress. She has worked directly with U.S. senatorial and congressional offices to gain support for federal bills related to amendments to the Federal Radiation Exposure Act (Downwinders). For further information on the Downwinders, contact Sherrie at hanna132@yahoo.com
