Portland's United Way names new president
Photo/Courtesy United Way
Suzanne McCormick, the new president of the United Way of Greater Portland
Photo/Courtesy United Way
Meg Baxter is leaving the United Way after 25 years
After leading the United Way of Greater Portland through two tumultuous decades of economic highs and lows, as well as a changing culture of need, Meg Baxter is stepping down as president.
Moving in to replace her is Suzanne McCormick, formerly CEO of People's Regional Opportunity Program and the American Red Cross of Southern Maine.
McCormick worked for the United Way when she first moved to Portland 16 years ago. She says she always kept the leadership role in the back of her mind. "It's a position I always envisioned myself in," she says. "I think I can bring the right perspective to the organization."
McCormick, who is 42 years old, says the United Way "has to become more relevant to my generation and younger generations."
That same thinking compelled Baxter, whose children are grown and married, to decide late last month to move on after first considering it a couple of years ago. She started at United Way in Portland in 1984 and became president in 1989. "I have been doing some reading about nonprofits in transition, and how people like me, baby boomers, have to get out of the way for the next generation of leaders," she says.
In the immediate future, she plans to take a couple months off, vacation in the Caribbean with her family and join a gym, and then preferably return to work in health and human services or early childhood development. She says she will stay involved in the United Way and its affiliate agencies. "The United Way has been my life and my passion," she says.
But filling Baxter's shoes won't be easy. Chris Emmons, United Way of Greater Portland's board chair and president of Gorham Savings Bank, says Baxter brought strong compassion to the United Way and cultivated the respect of other nonprofit leaders and state policymakers. During her tenure, she increased the United Way's budget from about $6 million annually to $11 million, with 75% coming from the annual campaign that focuses on the local business community, and 25% coming from other sources, such as the organization's endowment.
Baxter established the endowment to help create a more permanent source of funding after the booming ‘80s gave way to the downturn in the early 1990s. She also stretched the United Way beyond being a fundraiser to a program organizer, creating new initiatives to respond to the community's changing needs, such as building a language program for new Americans and an anti-obesity program for children. "She has brought a high level of diversity to the focus of the United Way," Emmons says.
As McCormick takes over the post, she hopes to expand its relevance by building a stronger virtual presence, she says, and increasing online social networking. She describes how the United Way could regularly email or update donors on what they care about, targeting the organization's message to help deepen relationships. And more social marketing could allow the United Way to make more connections with smaller businesses that don't hold annual workplace campaigns, she says.
Also, McCormick says workers at times will drop their commitments to the United Way after they retire or leave a big company like Unum for a smaller company. And with more people working from home, McCormick says she'd like to "get [donors] so energized that their commitment is portable."
Another way of connecting to a broader demographic is to appeal to younger people's notions of service, she says. "They are incredibly savvy about philanthropic giving," she explains. "They want to connect it to action and they want to be part of the action."
She adds, too, that she would like the United Way to support companies that develop a specific "philanthropic passion," one that may align with their business goals. "The United Way needs to be much more sophisticated around working with companies on what's important to them. Choice drives people's decisions," she says.
And she is looking to make an impact beyond greater Portland. "The other area I want to devote myself to is bringing United Way's voice to the State House and Augusta," where the organization's credibility and connections can help bring about significant policy changes. "If we want to change the way people in need are served, we need to focus beyond the local level," McCormick says.
Most Recent
Most Recent
Comments