Veteran association executive is credited with transformative changes at two groups

Longtime association chief executive Chris Mahaffey has died at age 69. Following a 45-year career in association management, he retired in 2020 as executive director of the American College of Foot and Ankle Surgeons after leading the Chicago-based group for 17 years.

"Words cannot express our profound sadness as we announce the recent passing of former ACFAS Executive Director Chris (J.C.) Mahaffey," ACFAS said in a statement on its website. 

"He was a dedicated leader to ACFAS and the profession as well as a friend and mentor to so many members, staff and colleagues. Chris chose to follow a path of public service within the field of association management where he was a luminary among association executives and helped to advance the mission of several institutions for over 45 years," the statement said. "Thank you, Chris, for being our inspiration, our mentor, and our friend."

Mahaffey also led what is now called the Association Forum from 1980 to 2002. He drove a name change from the Chicago Society of Association Executives to the Association Forum of Chicagoland in the 1990s. (The group rebranded as Association Forum in 2015.) Mahaffey fostered the creation of the group's Holiday Showcase.

Gary LaBranche, now CEO of RIMS—the Risk Management Society, succeeded Mahaffey at the Forum.

"He was the soul of the Forum, a giant intellect of the Association profession and the nicest human being one could ever hope to meet," LaBranche in a statement to CEO Update. "Chris personified the Chicago Association Community. He will be missed, but his legacy will live on in the bedrock of the association profession."

LaBranche said Mahaffey also led a revitalization of ASAE's Certified Association Executive (CAE) program.
"Chris was so welcoming to me when I joined the Forum last year," Association Forum CEO Artesha Moore said in a statement.

"It was an honor for me to have him personally reach out to show his support. His work and legacy forever changed our profession. If you are an association professional in Chicago, or elsewhere, chances are you've been touched by Chris Mahaffey's work.

"From the creation of Holiday Showcase to the CAE program, to the very name of the organization I lead today, Chris' legacy lives on," she said.

"Chris was an incredible thinker and a superb association leader," Paul Pomerantz, CEO of the American Society of Anesthesiologists and immediate past chair of Association Forum board, said in a statement.

"He made the Forum into a world-class organization and significantly enhanced the reputation of the Chicago professional association community," Pomerantz said. "On a personal basis, he was a great friend and made certain that I (and all transplants like me) felt welcome and connected upon our move to this city."

In 1986, Mahaffey was recognized as one of ASAE's first fellows, according to the Association Forum statement. In 1994, he was issued the ASAE Key Award, the profession's top honor for association CEO leadership. In 1998, Western Illinois University, his alma mater, recognized him with the Alumni Achievement Award. In 2002, the Association Forum honored him with the Samuel B. Shapiro Award, its top honor for CEO leadership.

ACFAS said that Mahaffey's family plans a memorial service in the coming months.