Gene Sachs is no stranger to The Community Foundation. A lifetime Montgomery County resident, successful corporate real estate advisor and alumni of the Leadership Greater Washington program, Gene joined The Community Foundation’s Board of Trustees in 2008. During his time on the Board, Gene would serve as Vice Chair, helping to expand The Community Foundation’s footprint in the Greater Washington region.
“My wife and I are firm believers in The Community Foundation,” Gene shared. “The impact that they make – and continue to make in the region, is truly phenomenal.”
However, it wasn’t until Gene stepped down from Board of Trustees and joined the Montgomery County advisory board that Gene was able to experience Sharing Montgomery.
“I wanted to understand more about what was going on at the grassroots level, here in Montgomery County,” Gene explained. “I wanted to know what was happening in on the grass roots level in places like Takoma Park and Wheaton – to really understand what was happening in the fabric of my outside of my bubble in Bethesda.”
On his first Sharing Montgomery site visit, Gene went to Wheaton HS, where he was introduced to a nonprofit working to help high school students from low-income neighborhoods prepare for college.
“I was just blown away by the work they were doing,” Gene remembered. “I immediately realized that I wanted to get more involved, however I could help them grow their mission and expand their reach.” Within a few years, Gene would join their Board of Directors.
Now in his third stint on the Sharing Montgomery Committee, Gene says he still enjoys every minute of it.
“I love hearing the passion from each of the presenters during our site visits – learning about the evolution of how they got to where they are now. I come away so inspired and humbled by the amount of work they are doing to change lives.”
Gene also shared how much he enjoyed seeing how Sharing Montgomery gave donors and partners a chance to network and collaborate at in-person site visits.
“A lot of times – after our in-person site visits – we’d get a lot of feedback from partners about how much they appreciated getting to see what other organizations are doing. Even though they sometimes work in the same field, just being able to hear what others are doing was enough to start a dialogue for potential partnerships.”
“Whether you’re a partner or a donor, Sharing Montgomery is a springboard for changemakers – convening outstanding leaders in the community and providing a better understanding of the transformative work being done in Montgomery County.”