AARP Announces New Strategy Officers to Build Value for Members

Source: AARP Press Center | 2009-03-09

March 9, 2009

Contact: Elly Spinweber, AARP, 202-434-2560, espinweber@aarp.org

WASHINGTON – AARP today announced the appointment of two senior leaders to spearhead organization-wide planning and execution of AARP’s work to promote positive social change within diverse communities and deliver value to all AARP members. Edna Kane-Williams and Raquel "Rocky" Egusquiza will serve as vice presidents of African-American and Hispanic outreach, respectively.

Together, Kane-Williams and Egusquiza bring a wealth of expertise and are poised to build on one of AARP’s biggest strengths: its diversity.

“We welcome this opportunity to increase AARP’s capacity to serve our members,” said Tom Nelson, AARP’s chief operating officer. “Their creativity, expertise and respective understanding of the African-American and Hispanic communities will be invaluable to the Association.”

By the year 2025, about 30 percent of the 50+ population in the United States will be ethnically and culturally diverse. AARP’s current membership, with more than 1.3 million Hispanic members and over 2.3 million African American members, is growing in its diversity. To develop even closer relationships with African-American and Hispanic communities across the nation, Kane-Williams and Egusquiza will focus on building meaningful and sustainable programs. They will work closely with AARP’s Executive Diversity Council and Office of Diversity and Inclusion, which offer strategic direction and policy guidance to help achieve organization-wide diversity goals.

Efforts will begin through AARP’s state offices and local partners and use grassroots strategies that address health and wellness and financial literacy issues. Later this year, AARP will launch the first two AARP Life Festivals, focused on health and finance, in Chicago and San Antonio. Additionally, the Association will work closely on diversity initiatives with key organizations on the national level.

“AARP has been committed to being an organization that values diversity throughout its 50-year history. We are so pleased to have Edna Kane-Williams and Rocky Egusquiza lead these new initiatives for AARP,” said Shereen Remez, executive vice president, Member Value. “As the country becomes increasingly multicultural, AARP will continue to support and represent all of our members.”

Egusquiza joins AARP from the Ford Motor Company Fund, where she most recently served as director of community development and international strategy. In this capacity, she also led external initiatives focused on reaching minority communities including American Indian, Hispanic and women. Additionally, Egusquiza worked with various international communities defining a global giving strategy for Ford and developed numerous community programs supporting education, child passenger safety and the arts.

Before joining Ford, Egusquiza served as vice president of legislative affairs for AT&T in Florida. She also held several positions within Miami-Dade County and the State of Florida, including executive director of Miami-Dade County’s Legislative Delegation. She has consulted on state and local political campaigns in Florida, served as a legislative assistant to the Florida Senate and worked for the Board of County Commissioners in Miami-Dade County.

Egusquiza serves on the Board of Directors of the Girl Scouts of the USA; the Congressional Hispanic Leadership Institute; and SER Jobs for Progress, a national Hispanic organization dedicated to service, employment and redevelopment. Egusquiza received her undergraduate degree in political science from the University of Miami in Florida.

Kane-Williams has spent more than 12 years with AARP, most recently joining the AARP Foundation in November 2006 as director of AARP Foundation Integration. In this capacity, she worked with leaders across the organization to enhance the Foundation's integration with and support of AARP's Social Impact and Member Value agendas.

Additionally, Kane-Williams has served in senior executive positions at organizations including the Epilepsy Foundation, Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide and East Baltimore Development. Most recently, she served as senior vice president of communications and social marketing at IQ Solutions, Inc.

Kane-Williams serves on the board of AARP Legal Counsel for the Elderly, Abilities Network and Family and Child Services of DC. She has a bachelor’s degree in urban studies and political science from Yale University and a master’s in gerontology from the George Washington University.

About AARP
AARP is a nonprofit, nonpartisan membership organization that helps people 50+ have independence, choice and control in ways that are beneficial and affordable to them and society as a whole. AARP does not endorse candidates for public office or make contributions to either political campaigns or candidates. We produce AARP The Magazine, the definitive voice for 50+ Americans and the world's largest-circulation magazine with over 34 million readers; AARP Bulletin, the go-to news source for AARP's 40 million members and Americans 50+; AARP Segunda Juventud, the only bilingual U.S. publication dedicated exclusively to the 50+ Hispanic community; and our website, AARP.org. AARP Foundation is an affiliated charity that provides security, protection, and empowerment to older persons in need with support from thousands of volunteers, donors, and sponsors. We have staffed offices in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands