DALLAS — At least five high-ranking executives with the Susan G. Komen for the Cure breast cancer charity have resigned in the aftermath of the organization’s decision to eliminate its funding for Planned Parenthood.
The departures include three officials from Komen’s Dallas headquarters, as well as the chief executive officers of affiliate groups in Oregon and New York City. Some of the executives cited personal reasons for resigning.
Komen spokesman Leslie Aun said she could not speak to individuals’ reasons for leaving but acknowledged the effects of the funding decision among supporters.
“Obviously, we know some folks are upset. We’ve certainly seen that,” Aun said. “We know people have been upset by recent events, but most really do recognize the importance of our work.”
The resignations began about a month ago. Chris Mc-Donald, executive director and chief executive of the organization’s Oregon and southwest Washington affiliate, announced that she’ll leave at the end of April. She said her decision wasn’t “predicated by any one event,” but that actions by national headquarters affected her thinking.
“Despite our deep frustration about the distraction that our organization headquarters’ actions caused, I was proud that our affiliate took a strong stand against the politicization of the fight to improve women’s health,” McDonald said in a Feb. 25 statement posted on the organization’s website.
She did not immediately return a call seeking comment.
News emerged in late January that Komen had decided to stop giving money to Planned Parenthood for breast-screening services because Planned Parenthood was the focus of a congressional investigation launched at the urging of anti-abortion activists. After a three-day firestorm of criticism, Komen reversed course.
In the days after the reversal, Komen policy chief Karen Handel resigned. She had opposed abortion as a Republican candidate for Georgia governor and had become a target of those angry about the decision to halt funding to Planned Parenthood.
In Dallas, the three who resigned were Katrina McGhee, executive vice president and chief marketing officer; Nancy Macgregor, vice president of global networks; and Joanna Newcomb, director of affiliate strategy and planning.
McGhee announced in February that she would be leaving May 4 “for personal reasons” and because it was “time to make a change.”
Macgregor will leave in June, and Newcomb departed at the end of February.
Messages seeking comment were left Thursday for McGhee and Macgregor. Newcomb declined to comment.
Dr. LaSalle Leffall also will step down from his post as chairman of the foundation’s board of directors as of March 31, but he will remain on the board, Aun said. His decision, finalized at a board meeting Thursday, comes as he is “stepping back a bit” from the board because of his responsibilities in his role as provost at Howard University in Washington, D.C., she said. Leffall did not immediately return messages for comment.
Dara Richardson-Heron, CEO of Komen’s New York City affiliate, said Tuesday that she will leave April 27. In a letter posted on the website, she said only that she wanted to pursue “new career opportunities” and that leaving “was not an easy decision.”
Supporters of the affiliate, called, e-mailed, tweeted and posted updates on Facebook about their concerns during those first days of February. But, Calhoun said, “things have quieted down considerably” since the decision was reversed.
Information for this article was contributed by Jonathan J. Cooper, Robert Jablon, Russ Bynum and Jim Fitzgerald of The Associated Press.
Front Section, Pages 2 on 03/23/2012