Alex Johnson and Veronica Carrizales
The California Wellness Foundation
The California Wellness Foundation (Cal Wellness) just announced the hiring of two senior leaders deeply connected to the communities it serves: Alex Johnson, who will rejoin the foundation as Vice President of Public Affairs, and Veronica Carrizales as its new Managing Director of Programs.
Mr. Johnson is returning to Cal Wellness after serving as Vice President at Bryson Gillette, a strategic communications and public affairs firm where he led efforts to support clients working to create social change across multiple sectors, including education, government, philanthropy, and nonprofits. Before his time at Bryson Gillette, Johnson served as a senior leader at Cal Wellness for four years. Johnson will be based in Cal Wellness’ Los Angeles office and will begin his role on January 30.
Ms. Carrizales has more than 25 years’ experience in community organizing and coalition-building. She has spent the past 15 years with California Calls, a powerful statewide alliance of community-based organizations spanning urban, rural, and suburban counties across the state. As a widely respected social justice leader, she has led efforts tied to California Call’s policy priorities of funding public services, improving government effectiveness, reforming the tax system to improve equity, and investing in economic development that results in good jobs that bring dollars into all communities. She will begin on February 6, and will be based in Cal Wellness’ Los Angeles office.
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Contact: pa@calwellness.org.
Linda Candelaria-Dodd and Denise Herrera
Con Alma Health Foundation
The Con Alma Health Foundation’s Board of Trustees appointed Linda Candelaria-Dodd as its new Executive Director, effective January 3rd, 2024. Ms. Candelaria-Dodd has served as a Con Alma Trustee Member since 2021 and replaces Denise Herrera, PhD. The foundation saluted the contributions of Dr. Herrera in helping refine its policies.
Ms. Candelaria-Dodd has served as Resource Development Manager at Carlsbad Lifehouse, Inc., where she executed major fundraising and outreach efforts, including grant writing. Prior to that role, she managed all aspects of daily operations as Executive Director/CEO at United Way of Eddy County and served as Program Director of the Carlsbad Literacy Program.
Ms. Candelaria-Dodd was raised in rural Los Brazos and has spent her life residing and working in small communities in New Mexico and Arizona, including the Navajo Nation in northwestern New Mexico and the White Mountain Apache Reservation in Cibecue, Arizona. Throughout her journey, she has cultivated strong connections and implemented effective strategies that have furthered the missions of the organizations she has been involved with, including her role as a volunteer board member for the Ronald McDonald House Charities of NM and the Eddy County Health Council.
Ms. Candelaria-Dodd will help Con Alma invest the remaining $4 million MacKenzie Scott gift as well as its annual cycles of grant giving focused on improving health and working toward health equity in New Mexico.
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Zahyrah Blakeney and Michael T. Walsh, Jr.
Episcopal Health Foundation
Episcopal Health Foundation (EHF) selected two new Vice Presidents with expertise in community health and health equity. Zahyrah Blakeney will serve as Vice President for Community Engagement and Michael T. Walsh, Jr. will join as Vice President for Grants.
Ms. Blakeney is an experienced community health leader with a 22-year track record of grantmaking, management, and strategic expertise across philanthropic, government, nonprofit, and faith-based sectors.
Mr. Walsh joins EHF after spending the past six years as Executive Director of the Cancer Prevention & Control Platform at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. Much of his work focused on developing community-led solutions for cancer prevention and health equity in under-resourced neighborhoods across Greater Houston.
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Esther Pitts and Robin Minard
Mat-Su Health Foundation
Mat-Su Health Foundation recently welcomed Esther Pitts as its new Chief Community Impact Officer. Ms. Pitts will bring experience in nonprofit hospital leadership to the foundation’s programmatic and philanthropic work, scholarships, and data collection and analysis. Robin Minard, the foundation’s Chief Communications Officer, is retiring in January 2024.
Ms. Pitts leads the Foundation’s programmatic and philanthropic work and supports the teams responsible for grantmaking, scholarships, data collection and analysis, and programs including Connect Mat-Su and R.O.C.K. Mat-Su (Raising Our Children with Kindness). She also co-leads the foundation’s health equity initiatives in conjunction with the Chief Operations Officer.
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Carolyn Brooks
Rippel Foundation
The Rippel Foundation appointed Dr. Carolyn Brooks to the Board of Trustees. As a public health and health care advocate, Dr. Brooks brings over 16 years of experience with local, state, and federal public health organizations, the private sector, and academia. She has led the planning, implementation, and evaluation of public health, health care, and policy initiatives designed to improve health outcomes and reduce inequities and health care costs. Her career has focused on leveraging the strength and resources of organizations to drive broader societal good, with a particular focus on the health and well-being of the most vulnerable—a focus that is directly aligned with Rippel’s work to advance equitable health and well-being.
Currently, Dr. Brooks serves as Vice President of Quality Strategy, Innovation and Experience for UnitedHealthcare, where she has held clinical and quality leadership roles spanning both Medicaid and Medicare. Her portfolio has included leading Medicare Star quality initiatives, improving maternal and child health outcomes, addressing the opioid crisis, supporting chronic condition management, and building organizational infrastructure to advance population health and equity initiatives.
Previously, Dr. Brooks worked with the Harvard Prevention Research Center, where she evaluated community interventions to prevent chronic diseases and reduce health disparities. She also worked in a variety of roles at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), including serving as the Health Equity Coordinator for the Division of Community Health, leading health equity efforts in the implementation of national community health initiatives. Prior to joining the CDC, Dr. Brooks worked with the Southern Center for Communication, Health, and Poverty.
Contact: Anat Gerstein at 646.321.4400 or anat@anatgerstein.com.
Clare Fox
Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems Funders
Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems Funders (SAFSF) appointed Clare Fox as Executive Director to lead the organization in harnessing the power of philanthropy and investment for food systems change. Ms. Fox joined SAFSF on January 15th, 2024.
With over 15 years of experience in network and coalition management, policy and advocacy, organizational development, community economic development and social impact, Ms. Fox comes to SAFSF with a deep passion for changing systems for a more regenerative, just, inclusive, and peaceful world.
Most recently, Ms. Fox served as Vice President of Strategic Partnerships at Everytable, a fast-growing social enterprise with a mission to make healthy food affordable and accessible for everyone, everywhere. She led the company’s social and environmental impact strategy; government, philanthropic, and community partnerships; and innovative pilots that scale Everytable’s contribution to a more sustainable, healthy, and fair food system. Previously, Ms. Fox served as Executive Director of the Los Angeles Food Policy Council, where she led a network of over 400 organizations on food policy. She has served as a board member for non-profit organizations working on community composting, urban gardens, and economic development.
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