Today, I could not be more pleased to share that, following our extensive and thorough search, the Pride Foundation Board voted unanimously to hire our Acting CEO, Katie Carter, to continue to lead us into the future as the next CEO of Pride Foundation.
Our Process and Decision
“Pride Foundation was founded to address ongoing LGBTQ+ injustices throughout the Northwest. Our search led us to the realization that, in Katie, we have a leader in house who can think critically and guide us in addressing our community’s most pressing needs authentically, powerfully, and effectively.” – Wakefield, past board president
When we began the search for Pride Foundation’s next CEO, my predecessor as board president, Wakefield, shared our vision of the qualities our organization’s next leader would bring: a passion for service to our region, a deep understanding of the persistent and emerging issues impacting our communities, a proficiency for storytelling about those issues in a way that moves others to action. Finally, we sought a champion for institutionalizing equitable practices—someone who has what it takes to advance Pride Foundation’s commitment to racial equity in meaningful and culturally relevant ways across our region.
During the national search that followed, I and the rest of the Executive Transition Committee had the honor of speaking with myriad leaders from across the country who brought a wealth of expertise, experience, and unique perspectives to our conversations.
It is clear that Katie is the leader who can step into the role that we have envisioned, and embody our values, while guiding us forward during this transformational time in Pride Foundation’s history. The staff and board are united in our enthusiasm for welcoming Katie as the organization’s next leader.
Katie’s Background and Experience
“During Katie’s time at Pride Foundation, it has been incredibly clear how much heart and energy Katie pours into her work. Her steadfast and determined leadership has helped deepen our commitment to people of color, youth, elders, people living with HIV/AIDS, and trans and gender diverse folks. Katie’s unique and thoughtful approach to Pride Foundation’s work creates space for our communities to bring voice and power to the future of our organization—and it’s been incredible to be part of this moment.” – Alli Auldridge, Director of Community Engagement
Katie began her journey as part of the Pride Foundation community over a decade ago as a leader of a grantee organization, then went on to deepen her involvement as a grant and scholarship reviewer and, later, a Community Advisory Council member. She joined the staff in 2014 as our Regional Philanthropic Officer in Oregon, then moved into the role of Director of Strategic Priorities, and was asked to serve as Acting CEO in September 2018.
During her tenure at Pride Foundation, Katie has led the organization through the finalization of Pride Foundation’s next Strategic Plan as the co-chair for our Strategic Visioning and Planning Committee, led the implementation and integration of the organization’s racial equity action plan, and facilitated the merger of Equity Foundation with Pride Foundation, among other significant contributions.
The combination of development, organizing, philanthropic, and social justice experience Katie brings to the CEO role will be significant assets to Pride Foundation as we look into the future. As a skilled fundraiser, Katie has passionately marshaled the energy, resources, and community support to bring Pride Foundation’s work to life. She also brings years of experience in philanthropy, collaborating and working alongside local and national funding peers on the intersections of identity, equity, and resource access and mobilization. In each of her roles at Pride Foundation, she has been involved extensively in our work across the Northwest, and will bring a unique regional perspective to her leadership.
Looking Ahead
“Since joining us as Regional Philanthropy Officer in Oregon in 2014, and throughout the many years I had the pleasure of working with her, I’ve been continually inspired by Katie’s vision for the future of Pride Foundation, and by her clear sense of what we can achieve when we come together. I cannot wait to see Katie’s transformative and deep impact on the future of Pride Foundation’s work and sustainability into the future.” –Kris Hermanns, Former Pride Foundation CEO and new Chief Impact Officer at Seattle Foundation
As CEO, Katie is committed to centering Pride Foundation’s racial equity focus and deepening the work the organization has been undertaking to continually evolve the organization’s approach, strategy, and practices to prioritize LGBTQ+ people of color who are most impacted by injustice. She will continue to grow the Foundation’s resources and programmatic capabilities to continually be more responsive to opportunities and needs across our Northwest communities.
We hope you’ll help us warmly welcome her to this new position at one of the events we are planning across our region, which we will be sharing further details about in the coming weeks.
We are confident that Katie’s steadfast, compassionate, and forward-thinking leadership, along with the breadth and depth of experience she brings, positions our organization to thrive in the years ahead.
We look forward to a bright future and are honored to continue this journey with you.
Brandy Pirtle-Guiney is Pride Foundation’s Board President.