Muriel Brathwaite, 1938-2025

Members of the George Edgecomb Society are mourning the loss of Muriel Brathwaite, a steadfast supporter of Moffitt Cancer Center’s work to overcome health disparities in the Tampa Bay area and beyond. She died Feb. 21 at the age of 86.

Brathwaite was born in Guyana and came to the United States to study international studies at Howard University. She went on to Columbia University for a master’s degree in linguistics. She spent her career working as a loan officer at the World Bank, focusing on anti-poverty projects in several West African countries, especially programs to empower women.

She retired to the Tampa Bay area and became active in several community organizations. Over the years, it pained her to see how many friends, particularly women of color, got diagnosed with cancer.

After a long career of addressing community needs in many countries, she also searched for an effective way to tackle this problem. This led her to support health disparities research at Moffitt.

“I’m a member of the George Edgecomb Society, which looks at how cancer presents in Black peoples in the diaspora,” she said in a video posted on Moffitt.org. She said it’s essential to research why a disproportionate number of Black people are diagnosed with many cancers and why their mortality rate is often higher.

“We know that’s long-term work,” she added, “but as long as it stays on the forefront of the agenda, something will, should, must happen.”

Brathwaite contributed to Moffitt in honor of her friends, which included making a gift in her will. “I’m proud to be a legacy donor,” she said.

Her daughter Renee Brathwaite said her mother was a loyal friend to many, an avid reader with insatiable curiosity and someone who believed deeply in assisting others.

“She has always instilled in me that it’s important to share the blessings you have and to help those less fortunate than you are,” she said.

Cathy Grant, Moffitt’s Chief Workforce and Community Advocacy Officer, said, "For more than a decade, Muriel generously dedicated her voice, time, and resources in many roles—always guided by a deep commitment to helping the cancer center better serve all patients and communities."

Brathwaite’s contributions are paying dividends.

She provided funds for a University of South Florida doctoral student to conduct research at Moffitt under the AI for Cancer Research Fellowship program. The student, Eliane Birba, is researching how to harness the power of artificial intelligence for better diagnosis and treatment of cancer.

The fellowship is designed to attract accomplished students from traditionally underrepresented groups into an important new area of study.

However, the fellowship was important to Brathwaite for another reason. Birba happens to be from Burkina Faso – one of the West African countries Brathwaite worked with while at the World Bank. Meeting Birba last September was a full circle moment for Brathwaite. More than forty years after tireless efforts to open school doors to girls in Burkina Faso, Birba is a testament to Brathwaite’s legacy. “She had a heart for this, because she understands as a person of color herself how difficult it is to succeed without proper educational qualifications,” her daughter Renee recalls. “She has always been about opening doors for women, especially women of color.”