KACF is governed by a volunteer board and operated by an executive director and regional liaison groups.

Svetlana Pushkareva Hutfles

Svetlana Pushkareva Hutfles was appointed Executive Director of KACF in 2009. She brings ten years of experience with the community foundation field to her position. Svetlana has been actively involved in developing community foundations worldwide and has served at the Transatlantic Community Foundations Network and Academy, the Worldwide Initiative for Grantmaker Support, and the Global Fund for Community Foundations.

Svetlana is a Chevening Award scholar, a participant of the Community Foundation Fellowship of the U.S. German Marshall Fund, Charles Steward Mott and the King Baudouin Foundations, and an alumna of the Young Leadership Fellows for Public Service Program of the United States Agency for International Development. She has contributed to the study “Future of Community Foundation Network: A Transatlantic Perspective,” and to the book Beyond Money and Grantmaking: Leadership Roles of Community Foundations.

Svetlana holds a Bachelor's Degree from the International Academy of Business and Banking in Russia and a Master's Degree from the University of Leeds in the United Kingdom. She is a strategic thinker with experience in organizational development, multiple project management, partnership-building and a belief in community foundations as both a local and global mechanism for growing and sustaining healthy communities.

Chip Blaser

Douglas County Community Foundation, Chairperson

Chip Blaser is the Executive Director of the Douglas County Community Foundation, based in Lawrence. Prior to starting that position in 2006, Chip was Vice President of Ballard Community Services, a human service agency located in Lawrence, and began his career as an attorney with the law firm of Barber Emerson. He has degrees in accounting and business, as well as a law degree, from KU. Chip is a graduate of Leadership Lawrence, a 2010 graduate of the Leadership Kansas program, and the chairman of the Kansas Association of Community Foundations.

Becky Goss

McPherson County Community Foundation, Past Chair

Becky Goss is the Executive Director for the McPherson County Community Foundation since its inception in 2001. Under her leadership, the Foundation has grown to $7.2 million in assets and awarded nearly $500,000 in grants to area nonprofit organizations. Becky has worked as a development officer and grant writer for nonprofit organizations since 1990. She received a Bachelor of Science in Journalism from the University of Kansas. Becky and her husband Todd reside in McPherson. They have two sons, ages 11 and 8.

Pam Moore  

Legacy, a Regional Community Foundation, Secretary

Pam Moore is Executive Director of Legacy Regional Community Foundation.  She has been actively involved in community development for a lifetime. As the planned giving coordinator at Southwestern College, Pam learned the nuts and bolts of fundraising and planned giving. When she signed on to raise $1.3 million dollars for a new mental health facility in Cowley County, the opportunity to work with people throughout the region proved to be a calling she adored.

In her job at Legacy Foundation, Pam works to connect donors with the causes they care about. She spends time with local nonprofit organizations, encouraging growth and sustainability planning. Pam strives to bring prosperity though philanthropy by encouraging regional cooperation as well as local initiative and by providing expert assistance to those who want to improve their own communities.

Betsy Wearing  

Greater Salina Community Foundation

Betsy is the president and Executive Director of the Greater Salina Community Foundation.  She directs the planning and operations, including fund and grant development, donor services, education and public relations. Established in 1999, GSCF has grown to more than $50 million in assets and has granted more than $20 million. It is home to more than 250 funds, a youth grant makers program, and eleven regional affiliates.

Ms. Wearing received her Bachelor of Arts in theatre and education from the former Marymount College in Salina, KS, and a Master of Arts in Communications from Wichita State University. Previously, she spent 15 years in health care marketing and community outreach. She and her husband Ben have three terrific sons.

Betsy has been on the KACF board since 2007. She has served on the marketing committee, conference planning committee, and GROW II committee.

Kristine Meyer 

The Community Foundation of Dickinson County, Treasurer

Kristine Meyer has been president of the Community Foundation of Dickinson County, Abilene, Kansas since 2003. She oversees the organization’s day to day activities including, asset development, programs and operations.

Meyer has spent more than 19 years in the nonprofit sector. Meyer holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from Washburn University and studied abroad at Cambridge University, England.

Lori Huber 

Washington County Community Foundation

In her current position at a federally funded volunteer program Lori Huber helps to build the capacity of partner non-profit organizations. Lori has been on the founding boards of the Kansas Association of Community Foundations, the Washington County Community Foundation, and the Crossroads Resource and Conservation District. She has also served on the Washington County Extension Board as secretary, the Washington County Development Corporation as secretary and president, and the Southeast Nebraska Economic Developers Association.

Lori graduated from Kansas State University with a BS in Finance and she has completed coursework towards a masters in nonprofit management from Capella University. She has built and expanded many community development projects through her employment at the Jefferson County Economic Development Corporation and the Fairbury Chamber of Commerce. She conducted a needs assessment of three Kansas counties during her time with Northeast Kansas Community Action Program. As the Development Director of a nationally recognized service dog school she increased private foundation funding by 75% the first year and another 27% the following year; raised funding to build student housing and renovate administrative offices; upgraded the entire technology system including computers, networked printers, software and related training; and expanded the Combined Federal Campaign from state-wide to national.

Lori and her husband Charles have two sons Jesse and Orin.

Janie DeVore-Gillis  

Coffeyville Area Community Foundation

Janie currently serves as a board member of the Kansas Association of Community Foundations. Believing and the strength in purpose of community foundations, Janie was a founding board member of KACF.

Facilitating growth of a regional community foundation from its inception is the vision of cultivating ground for healthy communities in the future. Janie enjoys working with donors and nonprofit organizations to strategically address community needs, a vital mission in the field work of community foundations.

Janie enjoyed 10 years as a leadership program facilitator, participated in the Kansas Community Leadership Initiative I, and worked to organize the Kansas Leadership Forum. She is a graduate of Leadership Kansas, received a BA degree from Washburn University, and was recognized as Distinguished Community Leader by National Association of Community Leadership.

Catherine Domsch  

Greater Northwest Kansas Community Foundation

Catherine graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Fort Hays State University. She was hired in 2004 as the first Executive Director of Greater Northwest Kansas Community Foundation. Along with her Board of Directors and Staff, Catherine has been actively involved in community and economic development for the Bird City community.

Catherine has represented the northwestern portion of Kansas since 2005 serving on the KACF Steering Committee, then becoming a Board Member in 2007 when KACF formalized.

Catherine and her husband have one daughter, Kierstyn, 8; and away from work she enjoys working and playing outdoors with her family & friends.

Aubrey Abbott Patterson  

Hutchinson Community Foundation, Past Acting Executive Director

Aubrey Abbott Patterson currently serves as the President & Executive Director of the Hutchinson Community Foundation in Hutchinson, Kansas. In this role, Aubrey’s mission is to connect donors to community needs, inspire philanthropy and provide leadership on key community issues. From 2005-2009, Aubrey also coordinated the launch of the Kansas Association of Community Foundations in its start-up phase.

While in graduate school at the Indiana University Center on Philanthropy in Indianapolis, Aubrey served as a program assistant at the Central Indiana Community Foundation where she learned the value and importance of community foundations. Prior to her graduate studies, she served as the Assistant Director of Leadership Studies and Programs at Kansas State University, her beloved alma mater.

Since moving to Hutchinson in 2004, Aubrey has become involved in the community by participating in Leadership Reno County, joining the Chamber of Commerce board of directors, and co-founding YP Reno County; a group that connects and involves young professionals.

Aubrey loves to follow politics and college sports. She plays volleyball & has recently taken up golf. Shopping is another favorite sport – but never as a spectator. Aubrey’s husband, Lance Patterson, is the director of operations for the Hutchinson Boys and Girls Club. In their free time, the couple continues to be endlessly fascinated and entertained by their three kids, Sadye, Lydia and Blake.

Christy Tustin  

Golden Belt Community Foundation

Christy L. Tustin joined the Golden Belt Community Foundation in June 2003 as Executive Director. In this role she promotes philanthropy in Barton, Pawnee, Rush, and Stafford counties by working with both donors and non-profit organizations. A lifelong resident of Great Bend, Kansas, she returned to her hometown after completing her education. She earned a bachelor's degree in marketing and international business from Kansas State University in May 2000. In addition she graduated from the Washburn University School of Law in December 2002 with a Juris Doctor degree and was admitted to the Kansas Bar in April 2003. Christy serves as a volunteer for the Barton County Planning Commission and the Citizens Advisory Committee at Larned State Hospital, is past-president of the Great Bend Rotary Club, and is a member of the Kansas Bar Association.

Brenda Chumley

Senior Vice President of Administration Greater Kansas City Community Foundation

Brenda Chumley is senior vice president of administration for the Greater Kansas City Community Foundation. With more than 3,000 individual funds under its umbrella—ranging in size from a few thousand dollars to tens of millions of dollars—the Foundation helps its donors organize their generosity, offering tools and services for a better way to give. The Foundation values integrity, respect, passion for serving its donors, and innovation, recognizing that every gift, whether $25 or $25 million, makes a difference in the lives of others.

As senior vice president of administration, Brenda is responsible for leading the administrative functions of the Foundation with a particular focus on enterprise risk management and emerging markets. In this role, she works with the Board of Directors monitoring potential federal legislation and conducting outreach to local delegates. She is also responsible for the management of the Foundation's development work, in particular the work with corporations, as well as the data integrity, technology, customer service and facilities functions.

In 2008, Brenda was appointed executive director of Greater Horizons, a supporting organization of the Foundation, established to help donors across the entire Kansas City region connect with local and national charitable causes and encourage donors, no matter where they live, to reconnect with causes in their hometown.

Brenda has been on staff at the Foundation since 1993. Over the years she has worked with many donor funds, building the infrastructure and providing the support needed to help donors accomplish their charitable giving goals. Brenda developed the Foundation's first online grant making system before any such product was available to the field, created a product line to allow the Foundation's infrastructure (back office) to be available for rural communities in Kansas and Missouri, and created the in-house infrastructure and customer services system for the Giving Card product.

Brenda earned a B.A. in Business Administration from Ottawa University. She is a member of the Council on Foundations Leadership Team. She has also been a participant at the Center for Creative Leadership in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Brenda and her husband Mike have two children, Garrett and Tara. She is actively involved with her family during her spare time and volunteers for numerous school activities. She serves on the board of the Basehor Linwood Education Foundation.

Shea Sinclair

Executive Director of the Western Kansas Community Foundation

Since July of 2008, Shea Sinclair has served as the Executive Director of the Western Kansas Community Foundation (WKCF) in Garden City. Prior to this position Shea served for seven years as the Executive Director of the Garden City Community College Endowment Association; a not-for-profit agency dedicated to raising and growing funds for student scholarships for those attending GCCC.

The WKCF's mission to enrich western Kansas life through philanthropy, collaboration and leadership keeps Shea very busy. She works with her staff and board to connect engaged donors to the causes they care about and encourages donors to continue to support the communities and non-profit initiatives that have offered so much to enhance their lives and the lives of those around them. Currently, the WKCF is home to 109 funds with an asset size of over $16 million. The Foundation serves fifteen counties in the southwest corner of the state.

Shea holds a Bachelor's Degree from Kansas State University. She is an avid college football fan, loves sports and traveling with her husband Kent.

• Advocacy Committee

  • Roger Viola - Committee Chair – Topeka Community Foundation
  • Ryan Roberts – Scott Community Foundation
  • Tom Fryer – Greater Manhattan Community Foundation
  • Becky Goss – McPherson County Community Foundation
  • Catherine Domsch – Greater Northwest Kansas Community Foundation
  • Jerilyn Johnston – Greater Northwest Kansas Community Foundation
  • Aubrey Abbott Patterson – Hutchinson Community Foundation

• The KACF Conference Committee

  • Sandi Fruit – Chair – Central Kansas Community Foundation
  • Christy Tustin – Co-Chair – Golden Belt Community Foundation
  • Aubrey Abbott Patterson – Hutchinson Community Foundation
  • Theresa Hearn – Derby Community Foundation
  • Angie Baur – Central Kansas Community Foundation – Butler County
  • Janie DeVore Gillis – Coffeyville Area Community Foundation
  • Troy R Unruh – Western Kansas Community Foundation
  • Sharon Long – McPherson County Community Foundation
  • Lynette Lacy – Supporting expert – KL Connections

• GROW II Committee

  • Chip Blaser – Chair – Douglas County Community Foundation
  • Aubrey Abbott-Patterson – Hutchinson Community Foundation

• Marketing Committee

  • Betsy Wearing – Chair – Greater Salina Community Foundation
  • Brenda Chumley – Greater Kansas City Community Foundation
  • Lori Huber – Washington County Community Foundation
  • Ann Allen – Parsons Area Community Foundation
  • Catherine Domsch – Greater Northwest Kansas Community Foundation
  • Aubrey Abbott-Patterson – Hutchinson Community Foundation
  • Shea Sinclair - Western Kansas Community Foundation

• Sustainability Committee

  • Becky Goss – Chair – McPherson Community Foundation
  • Ryan Roberts – Scott Community Foundation
  • Aubrey Patterson – Hutchinson Community Foundation
  • Brenda Chumley – Greater Kansas City Community Foundation
  • Janie DeVore Gillis – Coffeyville Area Community Foundation
  • Chip Blaser – Douglas County Community Foundation
  • Rob Allison – Wichita Community Foundation

• Western Kansas

  
  
  
  1. Ryan Roberts  – liaison – Scott Community Foundation
  2. Melinda Olson  – co-liaison – Thomas County Community Foundation
  3. Catherine Domsch  – co-liaison – Greater Northwest Kansas Community Foundation

• South Central and South East Kansas

  >
  
  
  1. Angie Baur  – liaison – Central Kansas Community Foundation – Butler County
  2. Theresa Hearn  – co-liaison – Derby Community Foundation
  3. Janie DeVore-Gillis  – co-liaison – Coffeyville Area Community Foundation

• North Central and North East Kansas

  1. To be announced.