California Community Foundation Announces Dorothy Avila Courtney As New Board Chair:
Prominent Community Leaders Join Board of Governors

Los Angeles — The California Community Foundation announced today the appointment of respected nonprofit leader Dorothy Avila Courtney to the position of chair of the board of governors. Additionally, four prominent community members, Dennis Gertmenian, Carolina Reyes, M.D., Thomas Schumacher and William E. B. Siart, are joining the community foundation’s board of governors.

“I am very excited and deeply grateful to be given the opportunity to lead such an outstanding organization,” says Courtney. “As chair of the board, I plan to work closely with the president of the community foundation to increase our presence — as both a philanthropic partner and a grantmaker — in all of L.A.’s diverse communities.

Recently retired, Courtney served as executive director of the Richstone Family Center for 24 years. Located in Hawthorne, Richstone works to prevent and treat child abuse, to strengthen families and to promote nonviolent conflict resolution in families and communities. Under Courtney’s leadership, Richstone grew from an organization in a single community serving 35 families to an agency in 13 locations, annually serving more than 6,000 participants with a wide range of social services.

In addition to her position at the California Community Foundation, Courtney actively provides professional support to a variety of nonprofits, such as The Jester & Pharley Phund, and serves on the advisory boards of the South Bay Violence Prevention Council, For Grace and Walk With Sally.

“We are so pleased to welcome Dorothy as our new board chair,” said Antonia Hernández, president and CEO of the California Community Foundation. “Both the board and staff of the community foundation are committed to making Los Angeles a place people love to live.”

“We’re also looking forward to working with our newest board members, each of whom is a leader in his or her respective field,” says Hernández.

As president of Buena Vista Theatrical Group, new board member Thomas Schumacher has co-produced such Broadway hits as The Lion King, which garnered six 1998 Tony Awards® , including Best Musical.

New board member William E. B. Siart is the board chair of Excellent Education (ExED) Development, a nonprofit organization that develops and manages charter schools in Southern California. Siart was chairman and CEO of the former First Interstate Bancorp, a $60 billion banking company that was acquired by Wells Fargo & Company in 1996.

Dr. Carolina Reyes, a perinatologist , is the executive director of the Los Angeles Best Babies Collaborative and an assistant professor at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.

Ready Pac Produce founder Dennis Gertmenian is also joining the community foundation’s board of governors. He currently leads Ready Pac’s board, and is an active leader in the Los Angeles community.

Additional new appointments include William Siart as chair of the Audit and Budget Committee and John Puerner, publisher of the Los Angeles Times, as chair of the Personnel and Compensation committee.

Established in 1915, the California Community Foundation is one of the largest and most active philanthropic organizations in Southern California, with assets of more than $670 million. In partnership with its donors, the foundation supports nonprofit organizations and public institutions with funds for health and human services, affordable housing, early childhood education, community arts and culture and other areas of need.

For further information on how to contribute to this fund or to learn more about the grantmaking process, please contact the California Community Foundation at (213) 413-4130.

Established in 1915, the California Community Foundation is one of the largest and most active philanthropic organizations in Southern California, with assets of more than $750 million. In partnership with its donors, the foundation supports nonprofit organizations and public institutions with funds for health and human services, affordable housing, early childhood education, community arts and culture and other areas of need.