The Links, Incorporated
Margaret Rosell Hawkins
Sarah Strickland Scott
Founded in Philadelphia, Pa. in 1946 by friends Margaret Rosell Hawkins and Sarah Strickland Scott, The Links, Incorporated is a premier international, non-profit volunteer service organization committed to enriching, sustaining and ensuring the cultural and economic survival of African Americans. This unique friendship chain, celebrated over more than 70 years, has grown to more than 16,000 professional women of color in more than 290 chapters in 41 states, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of the Bahamas, and the United Kingdom.
Members of The Links, Incorporated are dedicated to its mission of service and leadership. Members are corporate and civic leaders; lawmakers and judiciary; medical and healthcare providers; role models, mentors, activists and volunteers working tirelessly at the forefront of transforming communities of color. Working closely with sponsors, partners and supporters, The Links, Incorporated develops and implements transformational programming impacting lives in communities of color.
The key programming initiatives of The Links, Incorporated are organized into facets: Services to Youth, National Trends and Services, International Trends and Services, The Arts, and Health and Human Services. With more than five million service hours recorded in the past three years, The Links, Incorporated’s members regularly contribute more than 500,000 documented service hours in their respective communities annually through various programs.
The Links Foundation, Incorporated, the philanthropic arm of The Links, Incorporated has distributed more than $26 million in charitable contributions since its founding in 1979. The organization is the recipient of awards from the UN Association of New York and the Leon H. Sullivan Foundation for its premier programs. The Links, Incorporated: “Linked in Friendship, Connected in Service.”
To learn more about The Links, Incorporated, please visit our National Website.
Eastern Area of The Links, Incorporated
The Eastern Area comprises more than 3,900 members in 76 chapters in the states of Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Virginia, and the District of Columbia. Programming has always been the heart of the Eastern Area, as reflected in the stellar initiatives launched in the area: National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) Life Membership project; Non–Governmental Organizations’ forums held as part of the United Nations’ Decade for Women; African Water Wells Project to improve children’s access to clean water in African villages and much more.
In 2018, the Eastern Area launched the Health Equity Ambassadors Umbrella Missionary Trip to serve the people of a selected community through outreach, and education around health choices and risk reduction. The Bahamas was selected for the inaugural trip. The Bahamas has one of the highest breast cancer rates in the world. The drive to promote cancer awareness and risk reduction stems from the high prevalence of the (Breast Cancer gene) BRCA1 mutation among women, which increases risk for breast cancer and may have implications for prostate cancer among males in these families.
In partnership with the American Cancer Society, the purpose of the ACS Health Equity Advisor (HEA) program is to reduce cancer disparities in areas carrying some of the highest cancer mortality rates in the country. HEAs provide outreach, information, screening referrals, advocacy and other support to promote health in underserved communities and help strengthen the delivery of culturally competent cancer education interventions. Currently there are 113 Links that are certified Health Equity Ambassadors in the Eastern Area.
To learn more about Eastern Area, The Links Incorporated, please visit the Eastern Area Website.