Sabbatical Grants Awarded by Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation

Five Nonprofit Executives Receive $25,000 Grants

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (June 20 , 2007) - The Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation has awarded grants of $25,000 each to five leaders from North Carolina’s nonprofit community through its annual Z. Smith Reynolds Sabbatical Program. The sabbaticals allow nonprofit leaders to take extended breaks from their jobs to relax, revitalize, and gain new energy for continued work in the nonprofit area.

This year’s winners are:

• Betty T. Bailey, Executive Director of Rural Advancement Foundation International, Pittsboro
• Dot Chamber Ehlers, Executive Director of 11^th Judicial District ReEntry, Smithfield
• Earline Middleton, Vice President of Agency Services and Programs of the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina, Raleigh
• Jeanne Tedrow, Executive Director of Passage Home, Raleigh
• Debra Tyler-Horton, Executive Director of NC Justice Center, Raleigh

The Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation established the sabbatical program 18 years ago.  Foundation trustees saw that some of the most creative and inspired leaders in North Carolina’s nonprofit community were suffering from burnout from the daily challenges of sustaining and effectively managing a nonprofit.  Recipients structure their sabbatical time as they choose - to travel, work on special projects, spend time with family, read, relax or simply reflect.  The sabbaticals may last from three to six months.

“Burnout among experienced nonprofit professionals is a serious problem,” Thomas W. Ross, Executive Director of the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation, said. “They often go non-stop, juggling fundraising responsibilities with programming, human resources, and other duties.  After awhile, it becomes the only lifestyle they know, and they suffer professionally and at a personal level.  We make it possible for sabbatical recipients to walk out the door without worrying about how to cover personal expenses or ensure the organization will have adequate leadership in their absence.  They get time and space to clear their minds, renew their spirits, adjust their lifestyles, and get a fresh perspective on life.”

Betty T. Bailey has been Executive Director of Rural Advancement Foundation International (RAFI) for 16 years.  For more than three decades, Bailey has worked for non-profits promoting sustainable agriculture and thriving rural communities.

“In the last decade RAFI has had to rise to the occasion and deal with major transitions in tobacco, peanuts, contract agriculture and flood recovery in North Carolina agriculture,” said Bailey.  “We have been successful and we have made a difference but it has taken a personal toll.”

Dot Chamber Ehlers has been the Executive Director for 11^th Judicial District ReEntry for eight years and has worked for the organization for 20 years.  The organization focuses on the human services and economic needs of the citizens in Lee, Harnett and Johnston counties with the mission of “Promoting Healthy Choices, Building Strong and Safe Communities.”

Says Ehlers, “I know even one person can make a difference.  I know that everybody needs a place where they can succeed, where they will be accepted.  I know that in helping others, you help yourself.  So that is where our agency came from and that is where we will continue to go.  We don’t give up on people, we just meet them where they are.”

Earline Middleton has spent 17 years at the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina.  For the past year, she has served as Director of Agency Services and Programs and is responsible for the daily management of Agency Services and Programs, as well as regulatory monitoring of nearly 900 nonprofit emergency food programs.

Jane F. Cox, former President and CEO of Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina, said, “Earline has been employed almost 17 years at the food bank and continues to pour the fiber of her very being into the organization’s service to people in poverty at significant personal toll.”

Jeanne Tedrow has been working in the nonprofit sector for 26 years, and the last 18 have been with Passage Home.  Sixteen years ago she became the Executive Director of Passage Home, a faith-based community development corporation working to strengthen low-wealth families and neighborhoods through housing and economic development programs.

“Being drawn to a profession that helps build our community, helps families help themselves, works to break down racial and economic barriers and offers hope in a sometimes discouraging world, is and has been a blessing,” said Tedrow.  “My calling in this work and the reasons I am drawn to this work remain constant.  My faith deepens and I am grateful.”

Debra Tyler-Horton has been Interim Executive Director and Deputy Director of the NC Justice Center since 2006.  She has been with the Center for 10 years.  The NC Justice Center’s mission is to reduce and eliminate poverty in North Carolina by helping to ensure that every North Carolina household gains access to the resources, services and fair treatment that it needs in order to enjoy economic security.

“The work of helping people in poverty and directing the organization does not come without its storms, challenges and opportunities, all of which leave us with a residue of weariness,” said Tyler-Horton.

The recipients of the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation sabbaticals were selected on the basis of the need for a break from the stresses and challenges of their work environment, the innovation and creativity they have demonstrated in their past work achievements, and their potential to continue to make significant contributions to public service.  They must have worked at their nonprofit for three years, two of which in a leadership position.

The sabbatical program was begun in 1990 as an annual initiative of the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation.  The Foundation was established in 1936 as a memorial to the youngest child of R.J. and Katharine Smith Reynolds.  During its history, the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation has made grants of more than $403 million to projects in all 100 counties in North Carolina.  The Foundation’s current areas of major interest are community economic development, democracy and civic engagement, the environment, pre-collegiate education, and social justice and equity.

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Persons desiring more information about the sabbatical program should visit www.zsr.org, write or call:  

Sabbatical Program Coordinator, Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation, 147 South Cherry Street, Suite 200, Winston-Salem, NC 27101-5287 (336) 725-7541 or (800) 443-8319.