Dear One Heartland Friend,

As I enter my 20th year in the HIV cause, come closer to my 40th birthday (tough one for me to swallow) and look at additional ways to cut expenses at One Heartland, I have made the difficult decision to step out of the role of CEO in late September 2010. I am truly humbled by our collective achievements. The transformations we have made and will continue to make would not be possible without you.

I have not decided the next role for me outside of One Heartland. In the past few weeks, I have received some offers that would allow me to continue my work in philanthropy. It is likely that I will pursue one of these opportunities. Yet one thing is for certain, I will remain a passionate advocate for Camp Heartland and One Heartland for many years to come.

With that in mind, I am pleased to announce the formation of our Founder’s Council. This is a Council of our most dedicated contributors and volunteers including a large number of past summer volunteers. In the near future, I will share more details about this Council. In essence, Council members will receive ongoing “insider” updates from me on key One Heartland matters and will be afforded the opportunity to visit camp, serve on various committees and help in other ways as well.

I also want to take this opportunity to inform you that with my full recommendation and support, our Board of Directors has offered Patrick Kindler a job as the new Executive Director of One Heartland. Patrick will take the helm of the organization late this year following a brief interim period lead by Board President Jeff Maiken. Patrick has a wealth of experience in camping, education and more. Most notably, Patrick has over 15 years of experience in Curriculum and Program Development and 19 impressive years of experience working at camps, retreat centers, outdoor education centers and multicultural education centers. As our Director of Program Services, the organization grew to operate a record 7 sessions of HIV camping for youth and families at our home in Minnesota and at rented sites in California and New York. Patrick and Jill were responsible for the launch of new camp sessions for other social isolated populations including homeless children, foster children, those with Type II diabetes and those who identify as GLBTQA.

In the coming years, One Heartland is going to focus on securing the future of our founding legacy: our HIV camps.  In addition, we are going to focus attention and resources on the growth of additional noble programs for other socially isolated populations.  We will make a national and even global impact by replicating these programs widely.   By doing so we will grow our impact exponentially and also introduce important new revenue streams to the organization.

To support the future of One Heartland, please consider making a monthly donation to our Annual Fund.  Your contributions, truly have a profound impact on those we serve and will help us to continue to serve children, youth and families facing social isolation for years to come.

With gratitude,

Neil Willenson
Founder
One Heartland