NCPA Foundation Announces 2026 Sharlea Leatherwood Memorial Trailblazer Award

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (Oct. 4, 2026) – During the National Community Pharmacists Association's Annual Convention, Oct. 3-6 in Kansas City, Mo., the NCPA Foundation announced the recipient of this year’s Sharlea Leatherwood Memorial Trailblazer Award. The award honors the memory of Sharlea Leatherwood, former NCPA and NCPA Foundation President.

Xiaoyan Qin, PharmD, of Newton Center, Mass., received the award, given to someone who is blazing the trail for independent pharmacy owners and future generations of independent pharmacy. The selection was made through a blind selection process to guarantee fairness and impartiality.

“The Trailblazer Award is about recognizing someone who has overcome real obstacles and worked hard to get to where they are,” said Mark Riley, NCPA Foundation Board of Trustees member. “Xiaoyan’s story, coming to this country, building a career, and then building four pharmacies around the belief that patients deserve a real relationship with their pharmacist, is exactly what this award was created to honor. It means a great deal to the trustees to be able to recognize her this way.”

Qin came to the U.S. in 1998 from Shanghai, China, to attend Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, where she earned a Doctor of Pharmacy degree. After graduation, she grew dissatisfied with the corporate approach to care and came to believe there was room in the market for a full-service pharmacy offering private consultations, personalized recommendations, and unique products at affordable prices. She opened Union Pharmacy in Newton Center in 2019 and added a Newtonville location two years later. A third location followed in Needham in 2024. When she noticed customers driving in from Belmont, a fourth location became the obvious next step.

Customers and others have taken notice of her approach. Qin was a guest of Rep. Jake Auchincloss (D-Mass.) at then-President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address in 2023, in recognition of her work giving people a community-centered care option.

Qin’s drive to improve the patient experience extends beyond the counter. Alongside her husband, she developed SimpLED, a system that speeds up prescription pickup and check-in for will call, cutting down on wait times and giving staff more time to spend with patients rather than searching for orders.

During COVID, Union Pharmacy donated masks to local hospitals, provided thousands of vaccines, and offered multiple diagnostic tests.

“As an independent pharmacy, we always ask the question of our customers: what is more important than your health and your time? You are not a number to us,” Qin said. “We are here for the residents of our community.”