New Chapter for Woodbury Community Foundation, Executive Director

Alisa Rabin Bell, the first executive director in the history of the Woodbury Community Foundation, is leaving the organization to pursue other opportunities.

Her last day is March 31, but Bell said she would continue to volunteer with the Woodbury Community Foundation, which she says is “in a great place” moving forward.

“The board is very supportive,” she told Patch on Tuesday. “I’m excited to see what’s next for me and I’m excited to see what’s next for the foundation.”

Formerly and all-volunteer organization, the Woodbury Community Foundation hired Bell in February 2008.

“I believe that God opens and closes doors, and the timing was just really good for me and my family and the foundation,” Bell said.

She said she’s leaving the foundation on a positive note, and in an email to members WCF Board Chair Jim Widen lauded Bell for her work over the past five years. He specifically noted:

• Creating the Woodbury Citizens’ Academy which has helped developed more than 100 future leaders for our community.
• Establishing the Leadership Forum as a vehicle for shared development and consideration of community issues by area business owners and executives.
• Developing the Soirée Spooktakular as our premier fundraising event, generating more than $80,000 in net proceeds to support nonprofits and programs addressing our community’s most urgent needs.
• Organizing numerous Window on Woodbury luncheons and seminars on critical issues facing our community.
• Conducting a community needs assessment with the Wilder Foundation to identify Woodbury residents’ four most critically important needs—youth, jobs, housing, and food—which have been the focus of our programming and fundraising in recent years.
• Leading the Foundation as the Woodbury Chamber of Commerce’s 2010 Business of the Year.
• Working with Nonprofit-360 Consulting to conduct a strategic planning process that has provided new direction and energy for the Woodbury Community Foundation Board of Directors.
• Developing valuable partnerships with local businesses, nonprofits, and government agencies to serve the community in powerful new ways.

The Woodbury Community Foundation will hold a celebratory reception for Bell in April, Widen wrote.

Bell said she sees her stepping down as a great opportunity for both the WCF and herself.

“Life is a journey,” she said. “And I’m looking for my next adventure.”

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