Mary Lyons-Richards Named Director of Foundation Administration

We are thrilled to announce that Mary Lyons-Richards, current operations and grants manager, has been named director of foundation administration.

In this new and expanded leadership role, Mary will be accountable for overall Foundation operations and administration including human resources programs, information technology, information management, and grants management and administration. She will work with Neil Hawkins, president, and Melissa Damaschke, vice president of programs, to deliver a quality work environment, benefits programs, and highly effective and seamless information management at the program level, foundation level, and with the board. Further, she will become secretary of the finance committee of the board and will continue to serve as the Foundation program officer in the area of sustainable business.

“We are so proud of Mary and her accomplishments,” said President of the Fred A. and Barbara M. Erb Family Foundation, Neil Hawkins. “This promotion to director of foundation administration truly recognizes her professional growth and leadership at the Erb Family Foundation. She delivers big, and we are so glad she is part of our team!”

Mary will become part of the Foundation’s Management Team, and she will lead the Foundation Operations Team. She will continue to report to Neil.

Mary has been with the Foundation for over five years, starting as the grants and office manager and working through a succession of jobs with ever-increasing responsibility. Prior to the Foundation, she worked in the nonprofit sector in volunteer management, administration, and grants management at community development organizations. Mary holds a Bachelor of Science from Grand Valley State University and a professional certificate in sustainable business practice from GreenBiz.