Susan G. Komen®, the world’s leading breast cancer organization, today welcomed five new members to its Board of Directors. These respected leaders bring expertise in technology, finance, marketing and medicine, as well as a deep commitment to philanthropy and the fight against breast cancer.
“We are truly delighted by the talent and experience that these new members bring to Komen’s Board, and look forward to their contributions as we work to reduce breast cancer deaths and ultimately end this disease,” said Peter D. Brundage, Chairman of the Board.
The new members, voted in unanimously in June are:
Susannah Gray – Executive Vice President, Finance and Strategy for Royalty Pharma, the largest aggregator of pharmaceutical royalty interests worldwide. For the past 15 years, she developed and executed capital market transactions, implemented financial policies and set strategic objectives for a rapidly growing investment company.
Jerri Johnson – Executive Director, Business Technology for The Walt Disney Company. Jerri is a long-time volunteer for Susan G. Komen, having supported the organization since 2003. Most recently, she served as Board President of Komen’s Los Angeles County Affiliate. She has been living with metastatic inflammatory breast cancer for 18 years. Jerri is an operations executive with over 25 years of experience in the start-up, turnaround and improvement of organizations in national and international settings. She has demonstrated success in building and leading top-performing teams, focused on exceeding organizational goals. Prior to Disney she was a Partner at Ernst & Young, leading the ecommerce practice and strategic global accounts.
Kwanza Jones – CEO of the Kwanza Jones & José E. Feliciano SUPERCHARGED Initiative. Kwanza is a catalyst. As an accomplished artist, philanthropist, impact investor and sought-after speaker, she is committed to using her voice to spark change for the betterment of humanity. As CEO of the Kwanza Jones & José E. Feliciano SUPERCHARGED Initiative (kjsi.org), a philanthropic grant-making and investment organization, she invests in individuals, organizations and early stage/growth ventures across four areas: Education, Entrepreneurship, Equal Opportunity and Empowerment.
Eugene Kim – CEO of The Walking Company. Eugene Kim started his career in investment banking at DLJ Credit Suisse, covering technology and telecom. He later moved to Silicon Valley private equity firm McCown De Leeuw & Co. In 2008, he joined The Gores Group as a member of their global operations group. In 2012, he joined a startup called Pressed Juicery. In 2016, Eugene executed a recap valuing the Company at $200M with the Walton family office. In 2017, Eugene partnered with Kanye West to join as the CEO of his diversified holdings, including Yeezy, generating system-wide sales exceeding $1B, representing a 600% year-over-year increase in 2018. In 2019, Eugene assumed the role of CEO of The Walking Company, a U.S.-based comfort footwear company.
Christina Minnis – Global Head of Acquisition Finance and co-head of the Americas Credit Finance Group at Goldman Sachs. Christina joined the firm in 1998 as a vice president in IBD, where she focused on leveraged finance deals. She was named managing director in 2004, and partner in 2008. Prior to joining Goldman Sachs, Christina was with BT Alex Brown, where her last position was managing director in Corporate Finance. She is a member of the Yale Development Council and Yale School of Management Advisory Board.
John R. O’Neil – Senior Partner at the global law firm of Kirkland & Ellis. John O’Neil counsels some of the world’s most significant investors, leads the Investment Funds Group and sits on the firm’s global Management Committee. John graduated from Northwestern University School of Law and the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He is a founding member of the New York City Investment Funds Society, and serves on the board of Hopeland, a nonprofit focused on building a world where every child grows up in a safe, loving family. He also previously served on the board of the Lawyers Alliance for New York.
Board terms for Megan Berndt, Linda Custard, Connie O’Neill, Trish Wheaton and Angela Zepeda have ended, but each remains committed to Komen’s mission and will continue to partner with the organization to support breast cancer programs worldwide.
“The commitment each of our Board members makes not only to guiding and strengthening this organization, but to helping us save lives and achieve our mission, cannot be overstated. We are grateful to each person who has served on our Board and look forward to continuing to work together to end breast cancer,” said Brundage. “I want to particularly thank both Linda Custard and Connie O’Neill, both of whom have previously served as Chairs of this Board, and who have each served and volunteered for this organization since our earliest days. Linda and Connie established a legacy of leadership that we are honored to continue,” added Brundage.
