A couple of weeks ago I opened my Sunday New York Times to find inside the newest issue of ArtDesk , a wonderful quarterly arts magazine published by the Kirkpatrick Foundation and distributed through subscription as well as to New York Times subscribers. The lead story (featuring a cover photo of Dolly Parton) is " The ArtDesk 100: 2024 Discovery List " - described as "Our favorite creators, thinkers, and voices—who give the best of themselves... Our honorees evangelize for a better world in a way that transcends their own success." And as I peruse this impressive list of leaders - artists and philanthropists, including luminaries like those in the title of this post - imagine my surprise to find myself included in this list! It was truly humbling and startling, since seeing me included in the list was the first I knew about the story. And of course, recognition like this is really recognition for all the folks that make it possible for you to do what you do, boa
This reflection was created as part of my report to the Board of Directors at our recent quarterly board meeting. It seemed to me that it might be worth sharing more widely. So much has happened at the Foundation over the past ten years, it was a helpful exercise to try and capture those changes. I am sure I missed some! October 1, 2023, officially marked my ten-year anniversary at the Foundation. Inevitably with these milestones it is helpful to reflect on what has been accomplished, what has changed, and what remains to be done. Because this is an important and extensive story to tell, I hope you will indulge me as I share how the Foundation has transformed over these past ten years. Board/Governance I have worked with three (soon to be four) chairs in this time, starting, of course, with Lanny Martin, who led the search process that brought me to the Foundation. When I began it was a small board of five with no term limits and a Board that had not had a trustee of color in it