Three New Board Members Join Community First Foundation

ARVADA, CO (January 12, 2017) – Community First Foundation has appointed three new board members who bring extensive legal, strategic planning, philanthropy and business acumen to the Foundation’s board of directors.

The new board members are:

• Elycia Cook, executive director of FRIENDS FIRST
• Joy Johnson, community advocate
• Penfield W. Tate III, attorney with Kutak Rock LLP

“Elycia, Joy and Penfield have unparalleled community knowledge and passion for the issues we champion here at Community First Foundation,” said Marla J. Williams, president and CEO of Community First Foundation. “Their addition to our board will strengthen our ability to increase generosity, fuel positive change and steward community funds.”

Elycia Cook has previously served on the Foundation’s Community Impact Committee and will continue to serve on this committee in her new role. Elycia is the executive director of FRIENDS FIRST, a nonprofit that mentors teens to make positive life choices and develop healthy relationships. She has more than ten years of experience working with positive youth development programs in the nonprofit sector, managing multiple federal, local and state grants and million-dollar budgets. Her diverse employment history also includes strategic planning, business development, sales, corporate training, teaching, event planning and cross-cultural relations in the business sector.

Joy Johnson joins the board of directors after serving on the Core 40 Leadership Group for the Foundation’s Innovators Society, a program accelerating new solutions for mental wellness. She brings outstanding expertise in business and experience as a community volunteer and philanthropist.  As a community volunteer, Joy serves on the Executive Committee of Children’s Colorado Hospital and chairs the hospital’s Community and Economic Benefits Committee focusing on population health issues and health disparities. She also served on the board of the Colorado Children’s Campaign and is a former chair of the Women’s Foundation of Colorado. Previously, she enjoyed a successful career as an institutional trader on Wall Street as vice president of the New York financial firm of Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette.

Penfield W. Tate III is a partner at the Denver office of the law firm Kutak Rock with expertise in public finance and municipal law. He has wide-ranging experience representing public entities, lenders and underwriters engaged in the process of financing public improvements and advising local and state government on their administrative responsibilities. Penfield formerly served as a state legislator in both the Colorado Senate and House of Representatives. Additional roles in his work history included executive director of the Colorado Department of Administration for former Governor Roy Romer and aide to former Denver Mayor Federico Pena.

More Information on Community First Foundation’s board of directors may be found here.