From Assistant To CEO, New Foundation Leader Has Come A Long Way

Community Foundation of Greater New Britain

NEW BRITAIN/SOUTHINGTON/BERLIN, CT — A New Britain-based charitable foundation that also serves Southington and Berlin, among other towns, has recently hired a new leader.

And she is one who started as an administrative assistant and worked her way to the top spot in the organization.

The board of directors of the Community Foundation of Greater New Britain announced recently that Kaylah Milligan will be its next president and chief executive officer.

Milligan will assume leadership of the organization effective Jan. 1, following the retirement of David Obedzinski, who led the organization for eight years.

“This is a new chapter for the Community Foundation of Greater New Britain,” said Janis
Jerman, board president and a member of the search committee. “Her skills and experience,
coupled with her tenure with the foundation, will sustain and advance our work inspiring
philanthropy, elevating the capacity of local nonprofits, and leading positive community
change.”

The search committee specifically sought a nonprofit administrator with a ":collaborative
spirit" and executive experience.

Milligan will be responsible for strategic and operational leadership and advancing the organization’s endowment.

“I’m deeply honored to lead the organization where I’ve spent over a decade championing the belief that when everyday people come together, we foster creativity and generosity. I intend to bring both something old and something new to this position, combining my institutional knowledge with a fresh perspective as we strengthen the Foundation’s commitment to accessible, inclusive, and community-driven philanthropy,” she said.

Milligan’s career has been exclusively with the foundation.

First serving as an administrative assistant, she quickly advanced to program associate and assistant
director of development, director of development and community response, and then
to her role as director of philanthropy.

Milligan holds a degree in cultural anthropology and Spanish from Central Connecticut State University and attended the Universidad de Salamanca through an Inter-University program to complete her Bachelor’s degree in Spanish.

She completed a Master of Public Administration degree in nonprofit management from Marist University.

Established in 1941, the Community Foundation of Greater New Britain serves Berlin, New Britain, Plainville, and Southington.

For more information on the Community Foundation of Greater New Britain, click on this link.