The Russell Family Foundation names a CEO, and she already knows the ropes

As acting chief executive officer of The Russell Family Foundation, Kathleen Simpson helped the Gig Harbor-based charity pivot swiftly to community relief when the coronavirus pandemic hit in March.

Now she has been named permanent CEO of the foundation, which manages a $150 million portfolio focused on environmental and social giving.

A Kitsap County resident, Simpson had been acting CEO since January, and chief financial officer since September 2015.

“Kathleen has led with acuity, grace and compassion during a significant transitional leadership year for the Foundation in the midst of a pandemic that has impacted our grant-making and investment strategies as well as our community partners,” said Eric Russell, board president.

In a brief interview last week, Simpson said the coronavirus pandemic has challenged the foundation to react quickly to urgent needs.

“We flexed our usual grant-making process to make a $1 million responsive grant to the Tacoma Community Foundation, and we’ll continue to look to the needs and support we can provide to our Pierce County community,” she told The Gateway.

The pandemic response included a $1 million grant to the Pierce County Connected Fund to help Pierce County residents impacted by COVID-19 with urgent human service needs, and nearly $2 million in additional grants supporting 98 other organizations.

Puget Sound focus

Simpson said the family-run foundation, also known as TRFF, will continue to focus on its traditional giving areas: protecting the waters of Puget Sound, programs to alleviate youth homelessness and its Jane’s Fellowship program, which supports upcoming grassroots community leaders.

Simpson stepped into her dual role as interim CEO and CFO following the retirement of Richard Woo, who served as the Foundation’s CEO for 20 years.

Founded by George and Jane Russell, whose fortune was derived from the investment firm of Russell Investments, formerly of Tacoma, the foundation manages a portfolio of about $150 million, of which $5 million is given away yearly. It is headquartered in an office building at 3025 Harborview Dr. in Gig Harbor.

Since 2004, the foundation has emphasized what it calls “impact investment,” placing its portfolio with minority-owned business, environment-friendly enterprises and community banks. Simpson noted that roughly 90 percent of the foundation’s funds are now invested in institutions that it considers socially responsible.

A certified public accountant with a master’s degree in business administration, Simpson was previously director of finance for an independent wealth management firm serving individuals, multigenerational families and foundations. She also founded and operated a public accounting firm providing CFO services to businesses, high-net-worth individuals and nonprofits for more than a decade.

During the year Simpson was acting CEO, said Eric Russell, “It became very clear through her steady guidance that we have the right person in the role and we could not be more thrilled to have Kathleen accept this position and continue modeling our long-held value of humble leadership.”

Correction: An earlier version of this story misstated the amount of additional pandemic grants made by the foundation. It was $2 million, not $3 million.

This story was originally published October 21, 2020 at 2:45 PM.