Dear Colleague,
We have big news! The Durfee Foundation will be going through two leadership transitions in the coming year. We are excited to share our plans with you.
Carrie Avery, board president and staff member, will be leaving her position at the end of 2023. Executive Director Claire Peeps will depart in June 2024. These decisions come with considerable reflection and planning that hold Durfee values at their core.
This is a big moment for the foundation. Carrie has been Durfee’s president for 30 years and served on the board for 6 years before that. Claire joined the foundation as its second E.D. in 1996.
We have enjoyed an exceptionally long, creative, and joyful partnership. Throughout, our work at Durfee has been anchored in the belief that the sustainability of organizations depends on the well-being of the people doing the work. Highlights include Durfee’s widely recognized Sabbatical Program, its Stanton Fellowship for creative inquiry, the Lark Awards for the collective care of small organizations, Springboard seed funding for new ventures, and leadership in the Trust-Based Philanthropy movement. We have been deeply privileged to partner with inquisitive, dynamic leaders who are making L.A. a better place.
We both feel like it’s time for the foundation to experience new leadership, and Durfee is in a prime position to thrive through this change. Current board vice president Theo Avery will become Durfee’s board chair in January 2024. Theo will chair the Transition Committee that launches this summer to manage the search for a new executive director. He is supported by a strong board of family and community members, a highly capable staff, and amazing partners and alums who will help discern what Durfee should be looking for in its next E.D.
It’s impossible to encapsulate 30-plus years of growth, camaraderie, questioning, learning, tinkering, gathering, connecting, and sheer delight. We won’t even try. Most likely you have played a part in Durfee’s success because we couldn’t have done it without the trust and support of our phenomenal community.
With gratitude,
Carrie Avery and Claire Peeps