Marilyn Keefe is Interim President and CEO for the National Family Planning and Reproductive Health Association (NFPRHA).

Our very good friend and colleague, Cynthia Dailard, passed away on December 24 after suffering a cardiac arrest. Cynthia, a senior public policy associate at the Guttmacher Institute and a NFPRHA Board member, was a gifted thinker, writer, and speaker, whose highly regarded work focused on family planning-related issues in the policy and legislative arenas. Her contributions have been essential to advocacy and education efforts both in D.C. and across the country. The entire sexual and reproductive health and rights community mourns her loss less, both for her invaluable professional contributions to the field and for her years of unflagging good will and friendship.

A memorial service to remember and celebrate Cynthia's life is scheduled for Saturday, January 6th, 2007. In addition, a friend of Cynthia's has set up a website in her honor to provide a comment section to give people a chance to share their thoughts and stories with Cynthia's family and friends.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to a memorial fund established in Cynthia's name at the Chevy Chase Bethesda Children's Center, where both her daughters, Miranda and Julia, attend preschool. The Cynthia Dailard Fund for the Enrichment of CCBC Children will be used for scholarships and enrichment programs for the school. If you would like to make a donation, checks can be made out to CCBC Children's Center (please note that your contribution is for the Cynthia Dailard Fund) and mailed to:

CCBC Children's Center
c/o Lisa McAuliffe, Director
5671 Western Ave. NW
Washington, DC 20015