
Susan Thaxton
Chief Strategy Office, The Mission Continues
2022
Susan Thaxton is the Chief Programs Officer for the Mission Continues, a national non-profit that empowers veterans to continue their service by applying their leadership skills and experience to volunteer in under-resourced communities in forty cities across the country. A Navy veteran herself, Susan came to The Mission Continues as a volunteer and was inspired by the incredible impact veterans can make when serving alongside each other in local communities and finding their new mission to address challenges we face here at home.
Susan has diverse experience that includes service in the military, private, and non-profit sectors. After graduating from Villanova University, Susan was commissioned into the U.S. Navy where she served as a Surface Warfare Officer on the USS Belleau Wood (LHA-3) and the USS Arleigh Burke (DDG-51). After the Navy, Susan transitioned into the private sector, working for General Motors.
Through her volunteerism, Susan found her way into the non-profit sector where she rediscovered her passion for mission-driven work. She has consulted with numerous non-profit organizations on strategy, fundraising, and board development. Prior to joining The Mission Continues, Susan served as the Executive Director for Girls on the Run of the Greater Chesapeake.
Susan holds a BA from Villanova University and an MBA from Harvard Business School. She lives in Annapolis, Maryland with her husband, Mickey, their two daughters, and their cat and beagle.

This cannot be thought of as a conference or a summit. The stakes are simply too high and the data/conversation and methods to drive action more valuable/motivating than any gathering I have attended. I took more than 100 pages of notes and have shared them with my CBS News leadership team, anchors, producers, and correspondents. Nothing about this gathering was easy. The agony around this topic is real. But no one curious about it could ask for a more devoted, rational, or unflinching look into this dark but decipherable world.
