Our Mission
Runway for Recovery is a 501(c)3 non-profit that provides families with a continuum of support along their journey with breast cancer. We create community by hosting events and providing services that create joy and inspire hope. With shared understanding we celebrate survivors, honor legacies and fund families.
Our History
"While many breast cancer organizations look to find the cure, I am looking to find ways to help those families for whom the cure does not come in time." -- Olivia Achtmeyer Boger
Six years after losing my mother to a decade-long fight against breast cancer, I resolved to find an aspect of the disease where I could honor my mother’s memory and make a difference for other families fighting their own battles with breast cancer. For sixteen years, brave survivors and those walking in memory or celebration have become models at the Runway fashion show. They have raised funds to help families who are dealing with the impact of this disease. As survivors, the models epitomize heroism and strength. They carry with them the spirits of all those who have lost their battle with breast cancer, and the families and communities that stood by them.
Unlike most nonprofits focused on breast cancer, Runway is not oriented toward a cure. Instead, we seek to improve the lives of those who are currently affected by breast cancer by serving as a platform for them to access the resources, knowledge, and support they need. Our mission is rooted in the understanding that no one experiences breast cancer alone, and that there are ways to ease the burden of this disease on parents, children, caregivers, and loved ones. We seek to celebrate and highlight the lives of those affected by breast cancer by motivating communities to support local families and directing funding towards services that significantly improve the lives of children and caregivers along their family's journey with breast cancer.
Until there is a cure, we will continue the work of honoring the survivors and funding the families of those impacted by breast cancer. Thank you for being an integral part of this organization's history and our future.
Founder, Executive Director of Runway
Our Team
Olivia Boger
Founder and Executive Director
Olivia Boger In July of 2019, Olivia Boger started her role as the full-time Executive Director of Runway for Recovery. After fifteen years in education, working as both an educator and an administrator at three different independent schools, Olivia transitioned to this role to pursue her dream of running her non-profit on a full-time basis. In 2007 after earning her Master’s in Education from Harvard Education School, Olivia established Runway for Recovery to honor her mother who passed away from breast cancer in 2001. With the support of a highly-engaged volunteer committee, Olivia ran R4R for the next decade while raising her own children and working in education. Olivia lives in Newburyport, MA with her husband, Andy, their three elementary-aged sons, and their chocolate lab, Harry Potter.
Whitney Mohler
Director of Development
Whitney Mohler, a Grant Writing and Development Consultant, brings 15 years of nonprofit and fundraising experience to the Runway team. Prior to becoming an independent consultant in 2017, she held various development positions at both The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation in San Francisco, and Citizen Schools in Boston. At Runway, she is responsible for the organization’s corporate and foundation fundraising, including all grant writing and reporting. Whitney holds a Bachelor of Arts from The University of Colorado in International Affairs, and a Master of Science from Northeastern University in Nonprofit Management. She lives in Newburyport, Massachusetts with her husband and two young children.
Caroline O'Donnell
Communications & Social Media Director
Caroline O’Donnell has been with Runway since its inception when she was 16-years old. Since then, her role has grown to include managing Runway’s social media and writing the blog. She considers it a great privilege to be trusted to tell the stories of the women, children, and families impacted by breast cancer in the Runway community. Caroline earned her bachelor’s degree from The College of the Holy Cross. She is currently the Director of Client Services at Catalyst Financial Partners and was previously with BNY Mellon Wealth Management. Caroline lives in the North End in Boston and when not working enjoys triathlons and running, most recently completing the 2021 Boston Marathon-raising money for the TB12 Foundation.
Sue Burke, RN, MSN, CCM
Care Team
Sue Burke has had the honor of volunteering for Runway for the past 2 years. As a member of the Care Team, she has had the privilege of meeting with so many courageous and deserving applicants and to work with the most dynamic and dedicated Runway Team. Sue retired from a forty-year nursing career at Shriners Hospital for Children in Boston where she began as a pediatric staff nurse on the Reconstructive Unit and in later years as a Case Manager. Sue also participated in leadership roles in community education and outreach. She has found purpose in Runway to continue working with families through advocacy and outreach and is so grateful to continue this opportunity for many years to come. Sue lives in Charlestown, MA and treasures spending time with her children and five granddaughters.
Elyse Destiche
Care Team, New England
Elyse Destiche has been with the Runway family since August 2023. She is incredibly grateful to be able to work with our families and the many generous organizations that assist Runway in supporting grantees. Prior to her role at Runway, she had recently worked with system impacted individuals, and adolescents and families experiencing mental health crises. Elyse has been personally, deeply connected to cancer, as she lost a paternal grandmother to ovarian cancer and maternal grandfather to colon cancer. Elyse graduated from California State University, Dominguez Hills (BA) and California State University, Fullerton (MSW) and lives in Boston with her lovable senior dog and partner.
Jessie Reardon
Retreat Program Coordinator
Jessie Reardon is passionate about making connections, and that's exactly what she loves to do at Runway. Jessie supports the Rally for Runway programs which network our Runway community with local fitness studios. She also supports the annual Recovery Retreat for Runway Models, a once-a-year opportunity to come together and connect outside of the Runway Show. Jessie is also a fitness instructor at Fuel Training Studio, one of Runway’s favorite Rally partners. She lives in Newburyport with her husband and three children.
Chris DeFilippi
Strategy and Data Director
Chris DeFilippi has spent the last ten years helping schools, startups, and non-profits create scaleable, repeatable and sustainable processes. His consulting firm, Hazen Consulting Group, helps startup interested in implementing Salesforce, non-profits looking to learn more about your donors, schools who want to understand enrollment trends, and much more. He is a passionate supporter of both breast cancer organizations and female run businesses having served on many boards that dedicate themselves to women's health and equity issues. He lives in Cornwall, NY with his finace, Austin, and their adorable dog, Rocky. He and Austin have also recently founded Rocky Bagels - must try for those in the Hudson Valley.
Ann Marks
Marketing Director
Ann Marks brings over 15 years of graphic design and marketing experience to Runway. After studying Art History and Architecture at Trinity College she continued her education in Graphic Design at Massachusetts College of Art and Design. She has worked for a variety of companies as both an in-house and freelance designer. She is constantly inspired by the team at Runway, along with the models and families served, to create designs that support the mission of this amazing organization. Ann lives in Newburyport with her husband and children.
Michelle Fernandes
Care Team, Southern California
Michelle Fernandes has been a member of the Care Team since January 2023. She is a California state licensed clinical social worker with 18 years of clinical experience and program development serving children, youth and families in various non-profit mental health settings, with special focus on trauma. Michelle made the leap to academia in 2015 and is a full-time lecturer in the graduate Department of Social Work at California State University, Fullerton. With a flexible schedule, Michelle is grateful to be able to provide advocacy and support to families impacted by MBC and collaborate with the amazing Runway team. She feels privileged to bear witness to the stories of incredible grantees and is inspired by their perseverance. Michelle lives in Los Angeles county with her husband and their 17-year-old son and two cats. Their 21-year-old daughter attends university in San Diego, California and they all love to visit her at the beach.
Melena Ward
Photographer and Creative Branding
Melena Ward started volunteering as a photographer for Runway for Recovery in 2019. Since then, she has photographed the Runway for Recovery board members, staff, local R4R events and taken photos for some of the R4R promotional materials. When she became a mom, her passion for photography evolved and she is now the owner and managing director of Plum+Port Photography. She strives to capture the pure essence of an individual in the moment. Melena is incredibly honored to be part of this organization—photographing those in the Runway community and helping the models tell their stories. Melena graduated from Hamilton College in 2007, where she majored in Psychology. Currently, she resides in Newburyport with her husband and two kids.
Our Board
We create a stage for heroes
Runway redefines the experience of breast cancer for families in three ways.
Community
After twelve Boston area events, the Runway community has grown to include hundreds of former Runway "models," a spirited tribe of supporters, and a growing cohort of beneficiaries who have received funding from Runway. Part of Runway's mission is to provide opportunities for connection, shared experience, and healing within this community. To serve as a platform for those affected by breast cancer to find hope, support, and a tribe, ready and willing to offer a hand. We do this by offering options for connection both virtually and in person throughout the year.
Event
Each year, we invite our community to nominate models who have been affected by breast cancer to dance down our Runway in a celebration of life. The event, held annually in October, attracts hundreds of people to cheer on our models. Local and national boutiques, hair and makeup artists, volunteers, and past models collaborate to pamper models for their trip down the Runway, demonstrating their strength and persistence. The event is the cornerstone of the Runway mission to celebrate families, survivors, and warriors undergoing treatment.
Families
The fundraising we do through the event and auction, and the generous contributions of our community not only cover our nonprofit operations and programs, but allow us to deploy funding toward families who have lost their mother to breast cancer or those families who have a caregiver living with stage IV breast cancer. With careful stewardship, Runway bolsters these families with a combination of financial support and wraparound services from counseling to academic support. The needs of each family differ immensely, and so does the support they receive from Runway.
Why We Walk
Meet Our Full-Time Volunteers
Runway for Recovery remains a nearly all-volunteer run organization. We have a team of dedicated and uniquely qualified individuals who work tirelessly to promote our message, manage our events and care for our families. Our volunteers give of themselves so that we can continue to give to those who need it most.
We need your help
The Runway community has been fortunate enough to meet over 850 men, women, and children who have been affected by breast cancer. All the funds, over $3.1M since our founding, goes to wrap-around services for families facing the unimaginable during and after a breast cancer diagnosis.
We want nothing more than to continue changing the lives of those affected by this disease in big ways and small. This is where you come in! Any donation truly helps and we are extremely grateful.
You may donate online by clicking the button below or sending a check to:
Runway for Recovery
29 Water Street, Suite 216
Newburyport, MA 01950