Our Board of Directors, Staff and Speakers Bureau
Within The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee there is a dedicated and passionate group of people working tirelessly to connect generosity with need. This team of experts is available to speak about a variety of topics. Speakers can share their knowledge about how The Community Foundation supports hundreds of charities in Middle Tennessee and beyond, and how The Foundation helps donors accomplish a variety of charitable, tax, and estate planning goals.
Presentations are suitable for community and civic clubs, charitable organizations, senior groups, and others. To schedule a speaker for your club or organization, call 615-321-4939.
Ellen E. Lehman, President
Ellen has served The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee as president since it began in 1991, and has seen it grow to become a philanthropic force in a forty-county area in Middle Tennessee. With a background in sociology and business, Ellen directs The Foundation's efforts to promote and facilitate charitable giving and endowment building, thereby giving donors choices, convenience, cost-effectiveness and security, as they make their charitable dreams a reality.
Belinda Dinwiddie Havron, Director of Donor Education
Belinda is the director of donor education, responsible for establishing and expanding The Foundation’s ability to invite people from the community to participate in meaningful giving. Belinda most recently served as chief development and community relations officer at the Adventure Science Center for eight years. She has extensive experience in the nonprofit field and has been involved with a variety of civic organizations throughout her career including Center for Nonprofit Management, Rotary, CABLE, the Nashville Chamber of Commerce's Prosperity Project, and the Association of Fundraising Professionals, among others.
Amy Fair, Director of Donor Services
Amy is responsible for meeting the needs of current and prospective donors, including offering donors a further understanding of all resources and services available to support their philanthropy. Amy has extensive experience serving donors in the nonprofit field as she worked as the associate director of leadership donor recognition at The Ohio State University and as the associate manager of supporting foundations for The Columbus Foundation.
Pat Cole, Scholarship/TIP Coordinator
Pat, who has extensive experience as a teacher and guidance counselor, oversees and implements the Tapping Individual Potential program, which matches Metro school students who have demonstrated talent or outstanding potential with appropriate enrichment opportunities. She works with school counselors to identify students in grades K through 8 who would benefit from the program. Pat also coordinates and leads all scholarship programs and other education-related services administered by The Community Foundation. Previously, Pat oversaw the guidance counselor program for Nashville’s Metro Public Schools.
Michael McDaniel, Nonprofit and Endowment Liaison
Michael joined the staff of The Community Foundation in March 2000. Currently as Nonprofit Liaison he represents The Foundation in the 40 counties of Middle Tennessee it serves. He assists nonprofit organizations in their philanthropic and charitable goals as well as assisting in their infrastructure and endowment building. Prior to The Foundation, he served as the Director of Community Arts Development for the Tennessee Arts Commission, State Arts Agency, where he developed and sustained partnerships with other state agencies and nonprofit organizations. He has served as a panelist and consultant for local, regional and out of state organizations and served as a board member of the Tennessee Festival Events Association. Michael is a graduate of Leadership Donelson Hermitage, class of 2006.