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OCRA / About Us / History / Ann Schreiber

Ann Schreiber

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Founded in Memory of Ann Schreiber

(July 2, 1936 – September 18, 1994)

Ann Schreiber was an appreciator of fashion and the arts, and an activist who dedicated her career to improving the lives of families and children in need. To friends, Ann was bright, witty, and insightful.

As an executive at the Department of Health and Human Services, she was responsible for distributing over $3 billion annually through social programs in the Northeast United States. She was a bibliophile who loved the work of the 18th century writer Anthony Trollope. A magna cum laude graduate of Brooklyn College, Ann was awarded the Ford Scholarship that enabled her to pursue graduate studies at Columbia University.

In August 1989, Ann began to notice changes to her health. Eventually she was referred to Mount Sinai Hospital, and was diagnosed in 1989, with stage three ovarian cancer. She faced her illness with grace and strength, never allowing it to diminish the quality of the time she spent with family and friends. She was determined to live life to the fullest, and continued to work each day throughout her battle. Her husband Sol spent many nights with her at Mount Sinai Hospital and it was during those hours that Sol met the families and friends of other patients. Together they realized how limited the information was that was available to those touched by the disease of ovarian cancer.

Determined to make a difference, Sol, discussed research and support options with Ann’s physician, Dr. Carmel Cohen and together they resolved to form an organization that would educate and inform people about this disease and fund the research critical to making advancements in finding early detection tools and ultimately a cure. In December 1994, with the assistance of several close friends and Ann’s doctors, Sol founded the Ann Schreiber Ovarian Cancer Research Fund (which was later named the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund) in her memory. OCRF went on to become the oldest and largest charity in the U.S. funding ovarian cancer research.