Susan G. Komen for the Cure Signs Lease at Pew's Nonprofit Village
WASHINGTON, March 10, 2009 — The Pew Charitable Trusts today announced that Susan G. Komen for the Cure(R) will lease over 14,000 square feet of space in its D.C. headquarters, located at 901 E Street, NW. In partnership with the District and Mayor Adrian M. Fenty, Pew has dedicated the vast majority of its building to housing 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations, thus making it the city's first "nonprofit village."
"Susan G. Komen for the Cure(R) has been a leader in the fight against breast cancer for more than two decades. We welcome them to Washington, D.C. and our building," said Rebecca W. Rimel, President and CEO of The Pew Charitable Trusts. "Nonprofits play a unique and important role in the District, and we are honored to be part of the effort to strengthen their presence in our nation's capitol."
Komen's new office in Washington, D.C. is part of an effort to expand its presence and influence in public policy and in health care diplomacy. As such, it will serve as the home base for the organization's global outreach efforts, as well as its sister organization, the Susan G. Komen for the Cure(R) Advocacy Alliance. Founded in 1982 by former Ambassador Nancy G. Brinker in the memory of her sister Susan G. Komen, who died at age 36 of breast cancer, Komen for the Cure launched the global breast cancer movement and today is the world's largest grassroots network of breast cancer survivors and activists fighting to save lives, empower people, ensure quality care for all and energize science to find the cures. Ambassador Brinker, the organization's longest serving volunteer, who recently completed her tenure as the United States Chief of Protocol, will also be based out of the new Washington, D.C. office.
"This is a critical time in this country for health care reform and the war on cancer. By establishing firm roots here in the nation's capital, we are signaling that we plan to be actively engaged on behalf of the 2.5 million breast cancer survivors living in the U.S. and the people that love them," said Ambassador Brinker. "At the same time, cancer rates are rising at alarming rates in many regions of the world and there are significant economic and cultural barriers that prevent even the most basic care. It's a disease that is expected to kill 10 million people globally in 25 years without intervention. This must change, and from this office, we will work to do just that."
