CMC Celebrates Veterans Day
Meredith Brenalvirez ‘80 is president of the board of directors of Military Women in Need (MWIN), the leading non-profit for women veterans in California.
A MWIN board member since 1994, Brenalvirez has played a key role in the growth of the organization from a small housing facility to a nationally recognized non-profit. Under her leadership MWIN has grown to offer a breadth of services to the increasing number of female veterans and survivors of veterans. Her inspiration for leading MWIN derives from the veterans she has known, who Brenalvirez says embody the ideals of self-sacrifice, resilience, dignity, and duty to country.
MWIN serves a population that is increasing dramatically. At high risk for depression and suicide, many women veterans face unprecedented hardships like homelessness and the prospect of loss of custody of their children. Meanwhile, the VA is under fire for gross mismanagement, leadership issues, flawed contracting, and underserving the veteran community. And Congressional budget battles rip into funding overall. For this Veterans Day talk, Brenalvirez asks: Who serves this under-served population and how does it get done?
A member of the CMC’s pioneer class of 1980, Brenalvirez majored in economics and political science. After graduation, she worked in advertising on Madison Avenue in New York City for 5 years. She then returned to California to pursue a career in commercial real estate with a focus on shopping centers. Eventually she transitioned to non-profit work and community leadership. Active at CMC, she serves on the Kravis Leadership Institute Board, is involved in the Kravis-De Roulet Conference, the Women’s Leadership Alliance, and the CMC Pioneer Project.