As the Community Foundation of the Great River Bend celebrates its 50th anniversary, it's also welcoming a new leader. This week, Sherry Ristau officially started work as president and CEO.
Ristau comes from the Quad Cities after more than 20 years as president and CEO of the Southwest Initiative Foundation, a foundation that served southwestern Minnesota. It administerred 100 funds with assets of about 80 million dollars. In her new job, she will manage more than 900 funds, totalling 120 million dollars.
"So, it's just a chance to broaden my scope and take all the things I've learned. I think that being at a very innovative, hybrid-type community foundation and bringing that to a new and traditional community foundation to see what kind of things this foundation and board would be open to in terms of the future and how we meet the needs of the community here."
As she begins her new job, Ristau says her first priority will be to get to know her staff and board members, then, meet donors and community leaders. One of the main differences between her previous foundation and the Community Foundation here is the number of restricted funds.
"Most community foundations across the nation are restricted assets, and so my question and what I think is a huge opportunity, is to think about how we can build the unrestricted assets of the foundation to serve as a leader in the community."
Ristau replaces Susan Skora, who is retiring after 10 years, leading the Community Foundation of the Great River Bend.
(photo: Sherry Ristau)