Working to defy cancer: Meet Suzanne Crane - Working to Defy Cancer

This post is part of a series highlighting staff members within Dana-Farber Cancer Institute & The Jimmy Fund’s Division of Philanthropy, to give supporters an inside peek at life at New England’s favorite charity. Today, we’re talking to Suzanne Crane, Director, Corporate Partnerships.

*Suzanne (second from left) with members of the OOFOS marketing and PR team at the OOFOS corporate headquarters in Braintree, MA*

What brought you to Dana-Farber?
I had recently lost my job and my husband suggested I look into working at Dana-Farber. When I attended an information session, a former colleague of mine greeted me and helped me get the amazing job I have now!

I am beyond proud to work here and to shepherd incredible partners, including OOFOS. My father died at 48 of glioblastoma, and in 2021, I lost my 57-year-old brother to the same horrible disease. My brother was a patient at Dana-Farber. We never felt alone as a patient family. Our care team turned every stone to try to save my brother. When I pulled in for his treatment, the parking staff helped me get my brother out of the car and made sure he was safe and warm. It was a small thing, but I will never forget the care and kindness, literally from the parking garage up. This experience fuels my work and belief in Dana-Farber even more now. I would never work anywhere else—my only regret is not getting here sooner.

Can you describe your role here?
I am a director on the Corporate Partnerships (CP) team, and I work specifically on our cause marketing efforts. CP has three prongs that help to raise funds: cause marketing, sponsorship, and foundation relations. I work on managing and growing our cause marketing partnerships. This means we work with partners to find meaningful and tailored ways to fundraise together. We educate our partners on how their funds are used, and we keep them up to date on the incredible work that goes on at Dana-Farber. We also encourage them to consider new ways to be involved with us throughout the year.

Are you able to share a little bit more about your work with OOFOS?
I was assigned OOFOS as a new partner a few years ago. I had no idea what fulfilling work and what a special partnership was ahead of me at the time. OOFOS is the epitome of an interested, committed, and passionate corporate partner. Their inspiration comes from one of their first employees, Duncan Finigan. She asked her Dana-Farber oncologist at the time of her treatment what they could do at OOFOS to help, and he said, “raise money.”

*The OOFOS team presenting their first formal donation check to Dana-Farber. Duncan Finigan, their inspiration, is front and center.*

To date, OOFOS has raised close to $3.5 million and will always say they are just getting started. Not only do they raise money every month for breast cancer research at Dana-Farber (2% of every sale from their website is donated back to fundraising for breast cancer), but they are constantly looking to do more and more. In addition to their fundraising, they sponsor events and are incredibly generous with in-kind shoe donations. In 2022, the entire Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge team was gifted OOFOS shoes. They also gifted more than 1,200 pairs to Dana-Farber nurses during Nurses’ Week, which we are so grateful for.

Is there anything you would like to share with prospective candidates about working at the Jimmy Fund?
I came to Dana-Farber and the Jimmy Fund 15 years ago. The work done here continues to amaze me and is incredibly fulfilling. The benefits are excellent, and the efforts to encourage work/life balance are real. Remote work is an unexpected benefit as well. At the end of the day, our work is helping to defy cancer. Even since I started, the research at Dana-Farber has made so many gains in better care and outcomes for patients and families. What could be better than that?

If you are interested in exploring a career in Dana-Farber and the Jimmy Fund’s Division of Philanthropy, we invite you to check out our careers page to learn about our culture, view open roles, or register for an upcoming virtual Information Session.

We also encourage you to support Dana-Farber & The Jimmy Fund through The Dana-Farber Campaign, our ambitious, multi-year fundraising effort to prevent, treat, and defy cancer. The Dana-Farber Campaign will accelerate the Institute’s strategic priorities by supporting revolutionary science, extraordinary care, and exceptional expertise. As a community, we have the power to create a more hopeful, cancer-free future—in Boston and around the world. Together, we can defy cancer at every turn. Learn more about The Dana-Farber Campaign at DefyCancer.org.