NEW CANAAN, CT -- The New Canaan Community Foundation (NCCF) elected Sharon Stevenson as the foundation’s new Board Chair, effective July 1, the start of the foundation’s fiscal year.
Stevenson has served on NCCF’s Board since 2011. A resident of New Canaan since 2007, Sharon’s professional career has spanned international and domestic markets in both the corporate and nonprofit sectors for over 30 years. She has managed projects in the UK as a senior manager working with multi-national clients. In Budapest, Hungary and Warsaw, Poland, Sharon served on several executive boards within nonprofit expatriate organizations devoted to charitable institutions. In Budapest, she led fundraising efforts for the International Women’s Group and later assumed the position vice president of membership in Warsaw. As 1st vice president she worked closely with the organization’s president. These initiatives cultivated and shaped Sharon’s passion for philanthropy and volunteerism and inspired her continued nonprofit service in the U.S.
In 2008, Stevenson established a nonprofit, public/private partnership dedicated to renovating the Mead Park tennis facility in New Canaan. Over the course of two years and through the support of many organizations and fundraising efforts, the organization successfully raised the necessary funds to complete the project. Earning a grant from NCCF, Stevenson saw first-hand the positive impact of the Foundation. In addition to serving on NCCF’s Board, for the last six years, Sharon has also served on two additional nonprofit boards, in the Arts and Healthcare disciplines.
Stevenson commented: “I am delighted and honored to serve as the incoming Board Chair of the New Canaan Community Foundation. It has been a great privilege to work beside so many dedicated volunteers in supporting the mission and vision of the Foundation. I look forward to growing the Foundation with our exceptional Board and staff who are dedicated to the organizations and people we support and serve through our work.”
Stevenson follows Leo Karl III, who served as the foundation’s Board Chair since 2015. He completes his two-year term in this role, as well as an extension that helped him lead the foundation through a change in fiscal years. Karl will remain on the Board.
Karl commented: “As I conclude my term as Board Chair, I am grateful to all the residents of New Canaan who have chosen to support their community foundation with their volunteer time and financial support. NCCF proves the philosophy of ‘together we are stronger’ as the impact of our work is apparent all around us. From new walking trails installed by the Waveny Park Conservancy; to the recent owl release at the new Silvermine-Fowler Preserve by Wildlife in Crisis and the New Canaan Land Trust; to the soon to be renovated athletic field at NCHS by the New Canaan Athletic Foundation and the Town of New Canaan; to the stunning renovations at our YMCA; to the individual lives impacted by the financial assistance of the Touch A Life Fund; all the way to the local students able to pursue a higher education due to the Sapienza Scholarship Fund – the New Canaan Community Foundation has had a direct impact. It has been my privilege to lead our fantastic Board and an honor to serve the New Canaan community.”
About New Canaan Community Foundation
NCCF promotes community philanthropy and helps donors achieve their charitable goals. The Foundation helps all residents make their charitable giving personal, simple, and powerful. Local donors make a difference in New Canaan through the foundation’s high-impact grants and life-changing scholarships.
Photo: Leo Karl III, Board Chair 2015-2017, Lauren Patterson, NCCF President & CEO, and In-Coming Board Chair Sharon Stevenson
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Contact:
Lauren Patterson
President & CEO
New Canaan Community Foundation
203-966-0231
lpatterson@newcanaancf.org
Website: www.newcanaancf.org