Dear Orange County Leadership and Advisory Board Members,

It was great to see so many of you at the Gala Underwriting Party a few weeks ago. It is always impressive to see how much you all do for Seneca.

I want to re-introduce Paige Chan and clarify her role. I brought Paige on as the Executive Director of Southern California to help solidify and expand our efforts in the region with regards to both program and fundraising. With over 45,000 foster youth in our Southern California counties, it is imperative to begin to look strategically and critically at how we can best expand Seneca’s programs in the region.

I have worked with Paige over the last several years and am excited about what she will bring to our efforts throughout all of Southern California. Paige has a bounty of experience advocating for foster youth, program development, and developing/executing strategies to ensure financial sustainability. Prior to joining Seneca, Paige was the National Director of First Star, Inc., where she successfully launched college preparatory programs for foster youth on 11 campuses nationwide leading to 94% college enrollment and raised over $2 million annually. Prior to First Star, Paige served as an education attorney for foster youth through a prestigious fellowship from the Skadden Arps law firm. There she spearheaded several statewide policies and legislation with me that positively changed the education landscape for foster youth. When she was 18, Paige founded a non-profit that built schools and sports programs for orphans and at risk youth in Asia and Africa.

In the near future we will be presenting a plan for Southern California development, including Orange County, and hope to have your partnership and support in executing this larger regional vision. She and Nathaniel are working closely together to ensure sustainable fundraising initiatives throughout the agency.

I encourage you to get to know Paige and provide your insights. I know she is excited to dive in.

She will be at the next Board meeting and also trying to connect with you all individually so that you can get to know each other.

In partnership,

Ken