Brazas named president of The Community Foundation of WNC

Press release here. An important leadership position for our town:

The Community Foundation Board of Directors is pleased to announce that Elizabeth Brazas has been selected to succeed Pat Smith as President of the organization. Brazas, an attorney and banking executive, was the unanimous choice of the transition team and brings a wealth of experience to her new position. She will join the Foundation staff on November 1, 2009.

Brazas is a graduate of Davidson College and the University of South Carolina School of Law. She has worked in the private sector at Wachovia Bank and the Threshold Group, combining philanthropic, legal and wealth management experience. Her early career as an estate attorney and trust officer developed well-honed skills in compliance, budgeting, strategic planning, marketing, work plan development, implementation and measurement. In the communities in which she has lived and worked, she has been instrumental in forging valued alliances with community leaders and long-lasting relationships with clients and colleagues.

Brazas succeeds Pat Smith, the Foundation’s first full-time president. During Smith’s career, the Foundation’s assets grew from $5 million to more than $130 million today and more than $100 million in grants to nonprofit organizations have been made. She was instrumental in the creation of nine regional affiliate funds, the Mountain Landscapes Initiative, the Women for Women giving circle and WNC Nonprofit Pathways. Smith will be honored at a ticketed Community Celebration taking place at the North Carolina Arboretum on Wednesday, September 30.