Forced to reassess her priorities, Margaret quickly realized that “the small stuff doesn’t matter as much—that spreadsheet, deadline or deal you’re working on. At the end of the day, it’s about your legacy. Remember to live every day to its fullest, because you never know what’s coming next.”
Margaret reflects on her upbringing on Staten Island and the positive influence of her parents. “They were wonderful, family-oriented people who just wanted to be happy in life, and they truly were,” she smiles. Her father worked for the New York Telephone Company for 40 years, and her stay-at-home mother volunteered for Meals on Wheels for three decades. Margaret remembers as a child riding along with Mom as she made deliveries. “It was instilled in me early on to work hard, do the right thing and always lend a helping hand, especially to those who can’t look out for themselves,” says Margaret.
Emulating that altruism, Margaret, since her recovery and for the past five years, has been a board member of the Expect Miracles Foundation, where she helps fundraise for cancer research. She received the Expect Miracles Award, the highest honor that is given to an individual for their impact on the cancer community, from the organization in 2022.
“I’m happy to say we’ve had multiple years of record fundraising,” she reports. “It’s been wonderful to be a part of this organization and to feel like, in my own small way, I’m helping to draw us closer to a cure.” For this, and the many ways she mentors and gives back, Margaret was named a Morgan Stanley MAKER, joining a group of trailblazing women of accomplishment nominated by their peers.
Margaret marvels at “the strength you find to do the things you never thought you’d be able to, for the love of your family. It’s limitless,” she says. “They call me a miracle because they didn’t think the treatment was going to work on my late-stage cancer. But I’m here, I’m a survivor, and I’m a MAKER.”
Remember, she adds: “When things are grim and seem at their worst, be resilient. There is light at the end of the tunnel.”
Source: morganstanley.com
