The Claire Marie Foundation (CMF) was established following the death of Claire Marie Wagonhurst, a sparkling 17-year-old who lost a long battle with adolescent melanoma as a result of changes her body went through during puberty. Claire’s parents, Marianne Banister and Rocky Wagonhurst, and their oldest daughter Hillary created CMF with a mission of reducing diagnosis of melanoma in adolescents and young adults through awareness, education and prevention.
CMF is the only melanoma non-profit in the U.S. offering free skin screenings exclusively to young people. Through the Free Screening Program, the foundation screens hundreds of young people every year at no cost. CMF recently received its official 501(c) 3 certification, enabling the organization to streamline fundraising and have better access to grants as well as public and private allocations.
“I am honored to join Marianne and Rocky in the fight against melanoma on behalf of the Claire Marie Foundation in memory of their daughter Claire,” said Braue. “I am looking forward to working with the board on growing the foundation’s prevention and awareness programs and helping to reduce the number of adolescents and young adults diagnosed with melanoma.”
Braue has more than twenty years of experience in corporate law and government affairs, with a focus on mergers and acquisitions and venture capital transactions. Throughout his career, he has led deal teams in complex, multibillion-dollar financing and acquisitions. Before forming Nemphos Braue, he was special counsel at Duane Morris LLP and an associate at DLA Piper. Braue has also served in high-level positions in both the federal and Maryland state government.
Braue served in the White House as Deputy Associate Director of Presidential Personnel and was later appointed by President George W. Bush to be the Counsel to the Attorney General in the U.S Department of Justice. Braue was the Deputy Secretary of Appointments for Governor Robert L. Ehrlich, Jr., and he also led Governor Larry Hogan’s transition team for economic development and education agencies. At Nemphos Braue, he focuses his practice on sophisticated corporate transactions and represents private companies, venture capital investors and private equity funds. He is also the President of Old Line Government Affairs, LLC.
