Nicole Sirak Irwin

With significant time spent working in executive roles with Family Advocates, Easter Seals Goodwill, OXFAM America and the German Marshall Fund, Sirak Irwin works to build “good to great” cultures where the mission is clear, people are empowered and everyone is sup-ported to succeed.

Vanessa Fry, director of the Idaho Policy Institute and Red Cross of Idaho and East Oregon board member said, “What sets Nicole apart is not just her remarkable professional track record, but the way she leads — with integrity, empathy and an unwavering commitment to public service. She mentors emerging leaders through national development initiatives, up-lifts the voices of volunteers and staff, and ensures that the Red Cross’s mission remains centered on equity and responsiveness.”

Since stepping into her leadership role with the American Red Cross, Sirak Irwin has worked with board and staff leaders to double the region’s fundraising results, while achiev-ing significant gains in mission delivery. Engagement with clients, volunteers and employ-ees has also strengthened, which has positioned the organization for continued resilience and success.

With robust civic service experience, she finds true joy and purpose in engaging in direct service, board leadership, disaster response and policy advocacy. Some of her experience includes work as the vice president of the Whitney Foundation where she made local phil-anthropic investments, and work as a Court Appointed Guardian ad Litem (CASA), where she advocated for the best interests of foster care children. She also took on leadership roles in eight national disaster deployments within the American Red Cross, helping com-munities across the country respond and recover from crisis.

Sirak Irwin additionally with the Idaho Voices for Children experts to advocate for the De Facto Custodian Law, which gives grandparents who serve as primary caregivers equal custodial standing in court, and she participated in efforts to re-establish the Child and In-fant Death Review Board to improve child welfare outcomes.

“Nicole’s strong and passionate influence is what continually helps make her team and re-gion such a powerful and compassionate resource for every community in need, not only locally and regionally, but across the entire country,” shared John Irwin in nomination mate-rials. “She is always there for her staff and volunteers, continually helping them to advance not only in their careers, but to become the best version of themselves. Any positive influ-ence that she can provide to all those around her is what matters most to Nicole.”