After 28 years leading the Association of Arizona Food Banks (AAFB), one of the first state food bank associations in the country, president and CEO Ginny Hildebrand has announced her decision to retire effective June 30, 2013.
Ginny’s strong and guiding leadership coincided with the expansion of AAFB and the food banking network in Arizona to meet a growing demand for emergency food. Ginny is a tireless public policy and advocacy leader on multiple issues relating to hunger and poverty, and her expertise has benefited not only AAFB member food banks and those struggling with hunger and poverty in Arizona, but the entire anti-hunger movement, food banking sector, and households nationwide struggling to put enough food on their table.
Ginny started with AAFB in 1985 as the administrative assistant in a two person office. Eighteen months later, she was named AAFB’s executive director and has been in that role ever since, growing the organization into a seven person staff and an annual budget of nearly $2 million. With a strong passion to end hunger and help those who struggle in life, her efforts have improved access to and participation in federal nutrition assistance programs at both the state and national levels, obtained and maintained state funding to support food banks, helped to build a strong food bank network in Arizona, and focused on creating long-term, collaborative relationships across all levels of government, business and the community at-large to alleviate hunger.
The AAFB board is working diligently to identify a successor to lead AAFB into its next chapter, retaining TransitionGuides, a firm with extensive national expertise in recruiting non-profit chief executives, to oversee a nationwide search for Ginny’s successor. That individual will be in place by mid-Summer prior to Ginny’s departure.
Ginny is looking forward to spending quality time with her husband, daughters and grandchildren, and expanding her church mission work in Mesa, Arizona. AAFB and our member food banks wish her the very best in her retirement years as she continues to pursue her passion of improving the lives of others.
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