Donald Maciver

Donald MacIver is a Vietnam War combat veteran who served with the U.S. Army Special Forces – the elite Green Berets -- from 1967-1976. He received many decorations including the Bronze Star Medal, the Air Medal, the Army Commendation Medal, and the Combat Medic Badge for treating the wounded under enemy fire. Trained as a Special Forces Medical Specialist, he also served as the senior Operations NCO and Team Sergeant of an A-team in the Army Reserves. His top-secret unit, MACV-SOG, was awarded the Presidential Unit Citation.

In 1993, Mr. MacIver began a long history of activism and leadership in the fight to improve access to healthcare for veterans and those living with HIV/AIDS and hepatitis. He served in volunteer consulting and leadership positions with the AIDS Clinical Trials Group (ACTG) Global Community Advisory Board (Co-chair, 2010-2012) under the NIH, and the NYU School of Medicine / NYU Langone Medical Center AIDS Clinical Trials Unit (ACTU) Community Advisory Board (Vice Chair and Chair, 1996-2012).

Mr. MacIver has served as a consultant to the Suicide Prevention Initiatives organization in New York City, which conducts studies with the Department of Veterans Affairs and major pharmaceutical companies. His most recent appointment is to the Steering Committee of “HEROeS: A Vietnam Era Health Retrospective Observational Study” of 43,000 participants comparing the health today of in-country Vietnam veterans, Vietnam-era veterans, and era civilians.

As a gay veteran, Mr. MacIver has also been active in the fight for LGBT rights for service members and veterans. In 1993, he joined protests against the implementation of the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy against gays and lesbians in the military, which culminated in a peaceful non-violent protest and arrest with twenty-seven other activists on the sidewalk in front of the White House. He has served as President of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual Veterans of Greater New York, and currently serves as a member of SAGE Vets, a division of Services & Advocacy for GLBT Elders (SAGE).

Mr. MacIver is currently owner of SOCOM Strategies, LLC, a New York company offering strategic planning to political campaigns and non-profit entities. He received his B.A. in Government and Economics from the University of Texas at Austin.