Margaret C. Kirk
CEO, Breast Cancer Network of Strength
Meet Margaret C. Kirk, Chief Executive Officer, Breast Cancer Network of Strength
Margaret has been Chief Executive Officer of Breast Cancer Network of Strength™, formerly known as Y-ME National Breast Cancer Organization®, since July of 2001. Margaret has lost several close friends to breast cancer, supported others who are survivors, and lost her father to metastatic prostate cancer. It was partly these experiences that resulted in her accepting the challenge of leading this growing national voluntary health agency.
Under Margaret’s leadership, Breast Cancer Network of Strength has significantly increased its national visibility, enhanced its programs and grown its budget from $2.3 million in FY02 to more than $19 million in FY08. The number of full-time employees has expanded from 30 to well over 100.
Margaret has more than thirty years of not-for-profit experience, including academic, arts, and healthcare organizations—on the local, regional, and national levels. Her experience includes management, fundraising, and affiliate relations. Prior to joining Network of Strength, she worked for the Alzheimer’s Association for ten years, holding several different positions on both the local and national levels. During her four-year tenure as Vice President of Development, the contributed income of the national office of the Association more than doubled, increasing from $22 million to $52 million.
In her capacity as CEO for Network of Strength, Margaret chairs the board of directors of the National Health Council and also holds a seat on the board of directors of the National Breast Cancer Coalition. In June of 2004, she was named by Crain’s Chicago Business as one of the 100 Most Influential Women in Chicago.
Network of Strength is a Chicago-based national nonprofit organization with the mission to ensure, through information, empowerment and peer support, that no one faces breast cancer alone. Network of Strength does not raise money for research. Instead, it provides immediate emotional relief for anyone touched by breast cancer.
Breast Cancer Network of Strength’s peer support model is well differentiated in the breast cancer patient advocacy environment. The organization’s premier peer support service dates back 30 years to when it was founded: a hotline staffed entirely by breast cancer survivors.
YourShoes™ is the umbrella name for the organization’s peer support services and encompasses the 24/7 breast cancer support center with real-time interpreters available in more than 150 languages for telephone conversations; match program; support via e-mail; the ShareRing Network, a monthly one-hour teleconference; and survivor-facilitated support groups.
Peer counselors and facilitators are trained and certified. They don’t give medical advice – they are not medical professionals – but they can help people make educated decisions by providing information about procedures and treatment options.
Breast Cancer Network of Strength’s newsletters, other publications and Web site, www.networkofstrength.org, provide information and support to those touched by breast cancer. Network of Strength Advocacy™ works to increase breast cancer research funding, support breast cancer related clinical studies and ensure quality health care for all. The Wig & Prosthesis Bank provides products for those with limited resources; and A Day for You is Breast Cancer Network of Strength’s outreach program for the medically underserved.
The organization has affiliates throughout the nation that provide services such as support groups; breast health and teen workshops; wigs and prostheses for women with limited resources; and advocacy on breast cancer related policies in their communities.
Each year on Mother’s Day, the organization holds the Race to Empower in Chicago and Walk to Empower events across the country. Nationwide 50,000 people raise approximately $9 million in Chicago, Atlanta, Cleveland, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Haven, Phoenix, Sacramento, San Diego, Seattle, Springfield, Ill, Tulsa and Washington, D.C. In October 2008, Breast Cancer Network of Strength is holding the first Ride to Empower, a destination bike ride fundraiser with fully-supported route lengths ranging from a 100-mile century to less than 32 miles.
Under Margaret’s leadership, Network of Strength received the highest rating of four stars for sound fiscal management three years in a row by Charity Navigator, an independent evaluator of nonprofits. Additionally, Network of Strength meets all of the National Health Council's 41 Standards of Excellence, best practices that encompass the areas of governance, personnel policies, programs finance, fundraising, accounting and reporting, and evaluation.
A native of Kingsport, Tennessee, Margaret holds a Bachelor of Science degree from East Tennessee State University, and a Master of Arts degree from Indiana University. She and her husband, Tom, share a blended family that includes three grown children and four grandchildren.