Darren's New Adventure
Sometimes you’re presented with an opportunity that you can’t pass up. One such opportunity means that Darren Davidson will be leaving the staff of SVP Portland this Fall. While we are sad to see him go, we also understand (and celebrate) that he is doing what is best for himself and his family. The staff team has a plan in place to ensure continuity of our internal operations and impact work until a new hire can be made in the coming months.
When Darren joined SVP Portland in May of 2018, we were at a crossroads. For nearly two decades we had dedicated our resources to addressing the most intractable community challenges – but at the expense of our own organizational health. Darren arrived with a strong background in business management, financial analysis, process development, and information technology. His charge was to take over the day-to-day administration of SVP so that then-CEO Mark Holloway could focus on vision-building, strategy, and fundraising.
Darren oversaw development strategy, supervised financial planning, and provided the robust backend support needed for the organization to realize its mission. When a deep dive into our financial situation revealed trouble ahead, Darren helped form a recovery plan. A robust cash forecasting model demanded a need to right-size expenses and helped us weather the financial storm of 2019 and achieve the strong financial position we hold today.
Feeling he had met the challenge, Darren was contemplating a departure in 2020 when COVID hit. However, given the uncertainty and threat to nonprofits, Darren stayed to help SVP and our Community Partners mitigate the financial impacts of the pandemic and, with the subsequent loss of Sarah, he took over marketing and additional operational demands. With stability again at hand, Darren now departs confident that staff and the Finance Team can continue the work he started and see to the financial and operational health of SVP.
In Darren’s words, “It has been a privilege to work for an organization – and more profoundly with a group of people – so dedicated to having a positive, lasting impact on their community. It is the audacity of the vision and uniqueness of the model that brought me to SVP, but I stayed for the mission and the people.”He also looks forward to the prospect of joining as a Partner and building upon what we've accomplished together, and we’re excited about his engagement in that capacity.
Onward, together!
Lauren