Nancy Goodman Brinker (born December 6, 1946, in Peoria, Illinois) is the founder and CEO of Susan G. Komen for the Cure, an organization named after her only sister, Susan, who died from breast cancer in 1980 at age 36.[1] Brinker was also United States Ambassador to Hungary from 2001 to 2003 and Chief of Protocol of the United States from 2007 to the end of the George W. Bush administration. A breast cancer survivor herself, Brinker uses her experience to heighten understanding of the disease. She speaks publicly on the importance of patient's rights and medical advancements in breast cancer research and treatment.[2][3] She is currently serving as the World Health Organization's Goodwill Ambassador for Cancer Control.[4]
Brinker has helped build Komen by fostering a coalition of relationships within the business community, government, and volunteer sectors in the United States.[5] For her work on breast cancer research, Time magazine named Brinker to its 2008 list of the 100 most influential people in the world.[6] Calling her "a catalyst to ease suffering in the world," President Barack Obama honored Brinker with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor on August 12, 2009.[7][8]
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In 1982, Brinker established Susan G. Komen for the Cure, after a promise to her dying sister, Susan G. Komen, that she would do everything in her power to end breast cancer. Since its inception, the nonprofit has raised over $1 billion for research, education and health services,[9] making it the largest breast cancer charity in the world.[10] Komen has more than 75,000 volunteers nationwide, 122 affiliates in the United States (47 of 50 states), and 3 affiliates in other countries. The organization has resulted in the development of many new treatment options and a higher quality of life overall for breast cancer patients and long-term survivors.[11][12] Brinker served as founding chairman of the organization, supervising all aspects of initial growth,[13]. On December 2, 2009, Brinker was appointed CEO.[14] She also pioneered cause marketing, allowing millions to participate in the fight against breast cancer through businesses that share Komen's commitment to end the disease.[15] Susan G. Komen for the Cure received Charity Navigator's highest rating, four stars.[16]
Brinker is currently serving as the World Health Organization's Goodwill Ambassador for Cancer Control. She was appointed by WHO Director-General Margaret Chan on May 26, 2009. She is the organization's public face for its fight against cancer and is seeking to raise awareness and strengthen programs in poorer countries on behalf of the United Nations agency.[17] She advocated for strengthening global action for cancer prevention and control in the context of the Global Strategy for the Prevention and Control of Noncommunicable Diseases endorsed by the World Health Assembly in May 2008. Her message emphasized the need for low- and middle-income countries to strengthen comprehensive and evidence-based cancer control policies and programs.[18]
On June 18, 2007, President George W. Bush nominated Brinker to be Chief of Protocol of the United States and to have the rank of ambassador and assistant under-secretary of state. Brinker was sworn in to the post on September 14, 2007. Her term lasted until January 20, 2009.
In this role, Brinker advised, assisted and supported the president, the vice president and the secretary of state on official matters of diplomatic procedure. She accompanied the president on official visits abroad and served as the president's personal representative and liaison to foreign ambassadors in Washington. The Office of the Chief of Protocol is responsible for activities including the planning, hosting, logistics, and officiating at ceremonial events for visiting chiefs of state and heads of government. On April 15, 2008, Ambassador Brinker was the first American to greet Pope Benedict XVI upon his arrival at Andrews Air Force Base as part of her official duties.
The office also manages Blair House, the president's guesthouse. On October 7, 2008, Brinker hosted a symposium on "Breast Cancer Global Awareness” at the Blair House. First Lady Laura Bush joined the participants and for the first time ever, the White House was illuminated in pink for the occasion.[19]
During her term as chief of protocol, Ambassador Brinker expanded the role of the office through outreach programs intended to foster better relationships with the Diplomatic Corps. The effort involved over 60 events, including "Experience America", where the Diplomatic Corps traveled throughout the United States to meet with American business and civic leaders.[20][21]
Brinker served as United States Ambassador to Hungary from September 2001 to 2003 during the administration of President George W. Bush.[22] A political appointee,[23] she advanced a broad range of U.S. security and economic interests.[24] Specific successes include expanded security cooperation, development of a closure strategy for the Hungarian Fund, resolving commerce transparency issues, and for the first time, holding a conference on the trafficking and exploitation of workers that Health Ministers from the neighboring Balkan States attended. She also raised awareness about breast cancer among Hungarian women by leading a march over the historic Chain Bridge in Budapest. The bridge was illuminated in pink for the occasion.[25]
While ambassador, Brinker began to collect Hungarian art. Today, her collection spans 100 years, from just before the Austro-Hungarian Empire to the present and has been on display at several museums around the United States. The collection is one of the largest outside of Hungary.[26][27][28][29] The Nancy G. Brinker Collection extends and complements the acknowledged masters of Hungarian modernism and has introduced the American audience to original artists of more modest reputation.[30]
Hungarian President Ferenc Mádl decorated Brinker with the Order of Merit, Medium Class, Cross Adorned with Star, for her work in advancing bilateral relations and in recognition of her charity activities.[31][32]
In 1968, Brinker began a business and marketing career by entering the executive training program at Neiman Marcus in Dallas, Texas.
In 1994, Brinker founded In Your Corner, Inc., a business venture designed to meet the retail consumer need for reliable health and wellness products and information. In Your Corner, Inc. was sold to AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals in 1998.[34][35]
She has served as a director of several publicly held corporations including Manpower, Inc., United Rentals, Inc., U.S. Oncology, Inc., Netmarket, Inc., and the Meditrust Corporation, among others.
She has testified before the United States Democratic Policy Committee's Congressional Breast Cancer Forum and participated in the International Women's Forum.[36]
In recent years, Brinker has served on the boards of FasterCures and the LHC Group. Prior to assuming her position as ambassador to Hungary, she served on the boards of Manpower, Inc. and U.S. Oncology. She is also affiliated with several non-profit organizations and sits on the boards of New York University Medical School, the Harvard Center for Cancer Prevention Advisory Board, and the Palm Beach Fellowship of Christians and Jews. Brinker also served on the national advisory boards of the Women's Health Resource Center, Women's Health Initiative, the National Coalition of Cancer Survivorship and the National Cancer Institute. She is a former board member of such not-for-profit organizations as the National Jewish Coalition Board of Governors, New York University's Medical School Foundation, National Surgical Adjuvant Breast Project, Protocol & Diplomacy International - Protocol Officers Association (PDI-POA)[37] and the Bush-Clinton Katrina Fund.[38]
Brinker graduated in 1968 from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.[39]
Through her career as a businesswoman, consultant, healthcare advocate and philanthropist, Nancy Brinker has received numerous national awards and titles, including:
Brinker has appeared as a guest or contributor on the following:
Brinker has co-authored three books:
Brinker wrote the forewords for:
She is a daughter of Marvin L. Goodman, a commercial real-estate developer in Peoria, Illinois, and his wife, the former Eleanor Newman.[66]
Nancy Goodman married, as her first husband, Robert Leitstein, an executive at Neiman Marcus; they divorced in 1978.[66][67] They had one son, Eric Blake Leitstein (born October 13, 1975),[68] who is now known as Eric Brinker.[66]
In 1981, Nancy Goodman wed Norman E. Brinker, a pioneer of the casual dining industry[69] and founder of Brinker International, which provided access to capital and influence which enabled her role in public service.[70][71] Norman Brinker provided funds and methodology for building the Komen foundation. The couple were major contributors to George W. Bush's first presidential campaign.[72][73] They divorced in 2003, but Norman Brinker remained a board member of Komen for the Cure, having served on its board since its founding in 1982 until his death in 2009.[74]
Brinker was an avid polo player.[75]
| Diplomatic posts | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Peter Tufo |
U.S. Ambassador to
Hungary 2001–2003 |
Succeeded by George Herbert Walker III |
   | 25th Anniversary of the Susan G. Komen Foundation - WISCONSIN STATE JOURNAL |
| | Nancy Brinker Biography - Susan G. Komen for the Cure - We've moved! |
| | Susan G. Komen for the Cure website - Susan G. Komen for the Cure - We've moved! |
| | Biography of Nancy G. Brinker - Brinker, Nancy Goodman |
| | Office of the Chief of Protocol - Office of the Chief of Protocol |
| | Nancy G. Brinker Bio at GTN Speakers Bureau - Nancy G. Brinker: Greater Talent Network Speakers Bureau |
| | Brinker International website - Brinker International Restaurants |
| | The 2008 Time 100: Nancy Brinker - Nancy Brinker - The 2008 TIME 100 - TIME |
| | Susan G. Komen for the Cure website - Susan G. Komen for the Cure |
| | Susan G. Komen for the Cure - Charity Navigator Rating - Susan G. Komen for the Cure |
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