The Foundation for Delaware County announce that Monika Collins has been hired as the new Vice President for Advancement and Philanthropic Services.

Monika succeeds Ellen Grill who will be retiring in early March and who was instrumental in launching the Philanthropic Services department over the past five years at the foundation.

In this role, Monika will serve on the leadership team, and work directly with the foundation’s president and board of directors to plan and ensure that all activity is carried out in support of advancement, philanthropic services, estate planning, and communications for this fast-paced, rapidly growing community foundation that serves all of Delaware County.

Monika brings 15 years of development experience to the role. She served as a not-for-profit consultant, guiding organizations in their strategic planning, campaign and board development, public relations, and marketing.

Monika was formerly the Senior Director of the Sciencenter, a museum located in Ithaca, NY, and Director of Development for the Illinois Humanities Council in Chicago, IL.

Monika serves on the Advisory Council for Humanities West. She has served on the board of the Association of Fundraising Professionals, Finger Lakes Chapter; the Community Arts Partnership; and the University of Chicago, MAPSS Alumni Board.

She has also served on the Chicago Women in Philanthropy, Membership Committee; the Chicago Foundation for Women, Women of Color Leadership Council, as a University of Chicago UCPIP Program Mentor; and as Chair of the Humanities Member-led Forum at the Commonwealth Club of San Francisco. Monika is a Development Leadership Consortium Annual Fellow.

“Monika will be a strong addition to our team at The Foundation for Delaware County,” said Frances Sheehan, President of The Foundation for Delaware County. “As a community foundation, we are committed to providing meaningful charitable giving and estate planning options for generous individuals and businesses to give to causes they care about deeply.

“Her experience as a fundraising professional over the past 15 years will be critical as we continue to grow and offer philanthropic guidance to generous individuals in Delaware County who wish to set up donor-advised funds and include the foundation in their estate plans.”

Find out more about Monika here.

About The Foundation for Delaware County

A public charity founded in 2016, The Foundation for Delaware County is the largest philanthropy serving Delaware County.

The foundation encourages philanthropy by providing efficient giving vehicles like donor-advised funds, gift annuities, and estate planning advice to generous individuals who want to have an impact in Delaware County and beyond.

The foundation serves as a convener across sectors to address challenging community issues such as the need for a county health department.

The foundation operates the new Center for Nonprofit Excellence and makes grants to strengthen Delaware County’s nonprofit community. The foundation distributed more than $2.1M in Impact Grants last year and $1M from its Delaware County COVID-19 Response Fund.

With headquarters in Media and service sites in Eddystone, Upper Darby and Springfield, The Foundation for Delaware County also operates the prestigious evidence-based programs Healthy Start, the WIC nutrition program, and Nurse-Family Partnership.

Other programs include: El Centro (a Hispanic resource center), a health resource center for students in the Chester Upland School District, and the new Housing Opportunities Program for Equity (HOPE).

Find out more about the foundation.

Follow them on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter at @DelcoFdn.