Sarasota nonprofit names new president/CEO

After conducting a national search for its new leader, Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Sun Coast has named Kamala Martinez its new president and CEO. Martinez joined the organization Sept. 30.

Martinez is an established nonprofit executive with success “integrating philanthropic efforts with corporate strategy, particularly within Fortune 500 companies,” according to a statement from Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Suncoast.

Courtesy image

Her most recent role was vice president of development at the United Way of South Sarasota, where she “introduced an inclusive grant process and secured sizable funding in six months,” the statement says. Before working in Sarasota, she was the CEO of the United Way of Will County in Illinois, where she led initiatives that drove a 68.1% increase in total impact giving and creation of a crisis line that serves more than 700,000 residents, according to the statement.

Martinez succeeds Joy Mahler, whose tenure was more than 40 years with the nonprofit offering one-on-one mentoring for children in Sarasota, Manatee, DeSoto, Highlands, Hardee, Charlotte, Lee, Hendry and Collier counties.

“I am deeply honored that the Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Sun Coast Board of Directors has entrusted me to lead the organization into its next phase of growth,” Martinez says in the statement. “I look forward to engaging more Bigs to have meaningful relationships that empower and positively impact more Littles.”

To identify the next leader, the organization’s board created a CEO search committee and used the executive search firm BoardWalk Consulting.

“Our search process was inclusive, strategic, exhaustive and thorough,” Search Committee Chair Randall Woods says in the statement. “We are grateful to Joy Mahler for her amazing work as the longstanding CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Sun Coast. Joy’s exceptional work over more than 40 years has built an incredible foundation. She is a great leader and has consistently propelled this agency to newer and greater heights.”

Mahler announced she would be retiring in the summer after 41 years at the nonprofit.

“The process of identifying a leader to succeed Joy Mahler, an iconic, beloved and well-respected CEO was no small task,” Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Sun Coast Board Chair Michael Nachef says in the statement. “Kamala Martinez is a leader with the depth of experience our agency needs."