Nancy Goodman Brinker (born December 6, 1946) is the founder of The Promise Fund and Susan G. Komen for the Cure, an organization named after her only sister, who died from breast cancer. Brinker was also United States Ambassador to Hungary from 2001 to 2003 and

Chief of Protocol of the United States In the United States, the chief of protocol is an officer of the United States Department of State responsible for advising the president of the United States, the vice president of the United States, and the United States secretary of state o ...

from 2007 to the end of the

George W. Bush administration George W. Bush's tenure as the 43rd president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 2001, and ended on January 20, 2009. Bush, a Republican from Texas, took office following a narrow victory over Democratic ...

. Brinker, a breast cancer survivor, uses her experience to increase awareness and understanding of the disease. In 2011, she was appointed to be a Goodwill Ambassador for Cancer Control by the

World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health. The WHO Constitution states its main objective as "the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of ...

.For her work on breast cancer research, ''

Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, ...

'' magazine named Brinker to its 2008 list of the 100 most influential people in the world. President

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the ...

honored Brinker with the

Presidential Medal of Freedom The Presidential Medal of Freedom is the highest civilian award of the United States, along with the Congressional Gold Medal. It is an award bestowed by the president of the United States to recognize people who have made "an especially merit ...

, the nation's highest civilian honor, on August 12, 2009.

Early life

Brinker (née Goodman) was born to a

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

family in Peoria, Illinois,Encyclopedia of World Biography: "Nancy Brinker"
retrieved July 25, 2013 the daughter of Marvin L. and Eleanor (née Newman) Goodman. Her father was a commercial real-estate developer and her mother a housewife. In 1968, she received a B.A. from the

University of Illinois The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the Univer ...

. After school, she moved to Dallas, Texas and worked at

Neiman Marcus Neiman Marcus Group, Inc. is an American integrated luxury retailer headquartered in Dallas, Texas, which owns Neiman Marcus, Bergdorf Goodman, Horchow, and Last Call. Since September 2021, NMG has been owned by a group of investment compani ...

as an assistant couture buyer. Thereafter she took various positions at other public relation firms before marrying

Norman Brinker Norman Eugene Brinker (June 3, 1931 – June 9, 2009) was an American restaurateur who was responsible for the creation of new business concepts within the restaurant field. He served as president of Jack in the Box, founded Steak and Ale, and h ...

, the founder of the Steak and Ale, Bennigan's, and

Chili's Chili's Grill & Bar is an American casual dining restaurant chain. The company was founded by Larry Lavine in Texas in 1975 and is currently owned and operated by Brinker International. History Chili's first location, a converted postal statio ...

restaurant chains.

Career

Susan G. Komen

Brinker served as founding chairman of the organization Susan G. Komen for the Cure, supervising all aspects of initial growth. On December 2, 2009, Brinker was appointed CEO, a position which she held until June 17, 2013, when Judith A. Salerno succeeded her.

World Health Organization Goodwill Ambassador

Brinker is currently serving as the

's Goodwill Ambassador for Cancer Control. She was appointed by WHO Director-General

Margaret Chan Margaret Chan Fung Fu-chun, (born 21 August 1947) is a Chinese-Canadian physician, who served as the Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) delegating the People's Republic of China from 2006–2017. Chan previously served ...

on May 26, 2009. 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 The World Health Assembly (WHA) is the forum through which the World Health Organization (WHO) is governed by its 194 member states. It is the world's highest health policy setting body and is composed of health ministers from member states. Th ...

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.

Chief of Protocol

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 the White House was illuminated in pink for the occasion. As Chief of Protocol, Brinker expanded the role of the office through outreach programs intended to foster better relationships with the Diplomatic Corps. The effort, known as Diplomatic Partnerships involved over 60 events, including "Experience America", where the Diplomatic Corps traveled throughout the United States to meet with business and civic leaders.

Ambassador to Hungary

Brinker served as United States Ambassador to Hungary from September 2001 to 2003. For the first time, she held 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

Chain Bridge A chain bridge is a historic form of suspension bridge for which chains or eyebars were used instead of wire ropes to carry the bridge deck. A famous example is the Széchenyi Chain Bridge in Budapest. Construction types are, as for other suspen ...

in Budapest. The bridge was illuminated in pink for the occasion. Hungarian President

Ferenc Mádl Ferenc Mádl (; 29 January 1931 – 29 May 2011) * : Collar of the Order of Merit (Chile), Order of Merit (25 September 2002). References External links His biography at the website of the Office of the President of the Republic of Hung ...

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.

The Promise Fund

The Promise Fund of Florida was created by Ambassador Nancy G. Brinker, Julie Fisher Cummings and Laurie Silvers in 2018. It was set up to address a lack of preventative diagnosis of breast cancer among women in South Florida.

Other government service

In 1986, President Ronald Reagan appointed her to the National Cancer Advisory Board and in 1990, President George H.W. Bush appointed her to chair the President's Cancer Panel and monitor the progress of the National Cancer Program. In 1992, Vice President

Dan Quayle James Danforth Quayle (; born February 4, 1947) is an American politician who served as the 44th vice president of the United States from 1989 to 1993 under President George H. W. Bush. A member of the Republican Party, Quayle served as a U.S. ...

invited her to chair a subcommittee monitoring research, progress and development in the fight against breast cancer. Brinker was a bundler for George W. Bush when he was running for office, helping to organize and collect campaign contributions from other donors. In 2000, she became a Pioneer, a member of his $100,000 Club. And on December 24, 2008, President Bush appointed her to the board of trustees of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts for a six-year term. She testified before the United States Democratic Policy Committee's Congressional Breast Cancer Forum and participated in the International Women's Forum.

Awards

Brinker has received the following awards and titles: * 1995 University of Illinois Alumni Achievement Award * The 1997 S. Roger Horchow Award for Greatest Public Service by a Private Citizen, awarded by Jefferson Awards * The 2000 Cino del Duca Award, the James Ewing Layman Award from the Society of Surgical Oncology * 2004 Service to America Leadership Award presented by the National Association of Broadcasters Educational Foundation * 2005 Mary Woodard Lasker Public Service Award in Support of Medical Research * The American Society of Breast Disease 2006http://www.asbd.org/pages/online_release_5-3-2006.html * 2007 Trumpet Award * 2007 Castle Connolly National Health Leadership Award * 2007 Pro Cultura Hungarica Medal * American Association for Cancer Research Centennial Medal for Distinguished Public Service in 2007 * 2007 IARC Medal of Honour * Modern Healthcare 2007 Health Care Hall of Fame * 2009 Porter Prize *

, awarded by President

on August 12, 2009 *

Reader's Digest ''Reader's Digest'' is an American general-interest family magazine, published ten times a year. Formerly based in Chappaqua, New York, it is now headquartered in midtown Manhattan. The magazine was founded in 1922 by DeWitt Wallace and his wif ...

Trust Poll: The 100 Most Trusted People in America, May 2013 * Inducted as a Laureate of The Lincoln Academy of Illinois and awarded the

Order of Lincoln The Lincoln Academy of Illinois is a not-for-profit, non-partisan organization dedicated to recognizing contributions made by living Illinoisans. Named for Abraham Lincoln, the Academy administers the ''Order of Lincoln'', the highest award given ...

(the State's highest honor) by the Governor of Illinois in 2016 in the area of Social Services. * National Women's Hall of Fame *

Texas Women's Hall of Fame The Texas Women's Hall of Fame was established in 1984 by the Governor's Commission on Women. The honorees are selected biennially from submissions from the public. The honorees must be either native Texans, or a resident of Texas at the time of th ...

* ''Time'' magazine, 100 Most Influential People in the World * '' Ladies' Home Journal's'' 100 Most Important Women of the 20th CenturyBio: Nancy G. Brinker
* ''Biography Magazine's'' The 25 Most Powerful Women in America * Anti-Defamation League Americanism Award * The ''Ladies' Home Journal's'' Top 10 Champions of Women's Health * Global Pathfinder Award * The Champions of Excellence Award presented by the

Centers for Disease Control The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is the national public health agency of the United States. It is a United States federal agency, under the Department of Health and Human Services, and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgi ...

* ASCO Special Recognition Award * Cancer Research and Treatment Fund, Inc. Cancer Survivors Hall of Fame * The Sword of Ignatius Loyola Award from Saint Louis University * The Albert Einstein's Sarnoff Volunteer Award * The Champion of Prevention Award by the National Foundation for the

* Inducted into the Cancer Research and Treatment Fund, Inc. Cancer Survivors Hall of Fame

Publications

Brinker has co-authored four books: * ''Promise Me: How a Sister's Love Launched the Global Movement to End Breast Cancer '', co-authored with

Joni Rodgers Joni may refer to:is Given name * Joni Anwar (born 1981), Thai singer and actor *Joni Eareckson Tada (born 1949), American author and Christian ministry founder *Joni Ernst (born 1970), American senator from Iowa * Joni Haverinen (born 1987), Finn ...

- September 14, 2010 * ''The Race is Run One Step at a Time'', co-authored with Catherine McEvilly Harris * ''1000 Questions About Women's Health'', co-authored with Dr. H. Jane Chihal * ''Winning the Race: Taking Charge of Breast Cancer'', co-authored with Chriss Anne Winston Brinker wrote the forewords for: * ''Tamoxifen for the Treatment and Prevention of Breast Cancer'' by V. Craig Jordan * ''Tamoxifen: A Guide for Clinicians and Patients'' by V. Craig Jordan

Personal

Nancy Goodman's first husband was Robert M. Leitstein, an executive at

. They had one son together but divorced in 1978. On February 13, 1981, Nancy Goodman married Norman E. Brinker, founder of

Brinker International Brinker International, Inc. (or simply Brinker) is an American multinational hospitality industry company that owns Chili's and Maggiano's Little Italy restaurant chains. Founded in 1975 and based in Dallas, Texas, Brinker currently owns, opera ...

, which provided access to capital and influence and enabled her role in public service. Norman Brinker provided funds and methodology for building the Komen foundation. The couple were major contributors to

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...

's first presidential campaign. They divorced shortly after the 2000 U.S. Presidential election, 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. While ambassador, Brinker began to collect Hungarian art. 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. Brinker is a major funder of gay marriage initiatives. She serves on the advisory board of the Harvey Milk Foundation.

References

External links

Nancy G. Brinker website
*
Papers of Nancy Brinker, 1954-2019Schlesinger Library
Radcliffe Institute, Harvard University. {{DEFAULTSORT:Brinker, Nancy 1946 births Living people American businesspeople in retailing American health activists American LGBT rights activists 20th-century American Jews American women ambassadors Ambassadors of the United States People from Peoria, Illinois Ambassadors of the United States to Hungary University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign alumni Presidential Medal of Freedom recipients Illinois Republicans Texas Republicans Chiefs of Protocol of the United States Newsmax TV people 21st-century American Jews