Foothills Community Foundation tabs new executive director

STAFF REPORT ~ 7/27/2011

The Foothills Community Foundation (FCF), a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing resources for education, community service and cultural enrichment, has appointed Karen Mackiewich as the organization’s new acting executive director, effective Monday.
This staffing change results from the recent departure of FCF’s former executive director, Breanne Ulecwicz, who, it was recently discovered by FCF, had misappropriated FCF funds. Ulecwicz confessed to the theft, resigned earlier this month, and provided full restitution to FCF for the funds she had mishandled.
“We have navigated the worst of this difficult situation,” said FCF Board President Tom Lankford. “FCF now emerges with a renewed commitment to its work and anticipates that in this transition our work within our community will be strengthened.”
Mackiewich, who has been a part-time member of FCF’s accounting staff for the past 18 months, is a resident of Cave Creek. Mackiewich has more than 20 years of business experience, primarily in accounting, purchasing, payroll management and sales promotion. Mackiewich will serve as FCF’s acting executive director for at least the next six months, during which time the organization will conduct a formal search for a permanent executive director.
FCF has served the Desert Foothills communities of North Scottsdale, Carefree and Cave Creek since 1986. It provides a broad spectrum of programs and services, ranging from its Partners in Education program, providing funding and enrichment opportunities to local area schools, to its award-winning Desert Foothills Theater, to educational and social offerings made possible through other FCF programs, such as MindQuest, Desert Awareness, and the Foothills Film Society.
For information about FCF, visit azfcf.org, or follow FCF on Facebook at facebook.com/azfcf.