2024 Nonprofit CFO of the Year 

Carmel Darcy, Chief Financial Officer 
American Red Cross

Carmel Darcy provides strategic management and oversight of the financial activities for the American Red Cross. Focuses on multiyear revenue growth, cost management, and capital investments with the objective of increased mission delivery. Manages the organization’s Shared Services Center, and Procurement activities.  Leads a global team of approximately 350 staff and 250 volunteers. Builds financial solutions to scale for large domestic and international disaster response and recovery operations. Builds financial control environments with new technologies to provide mission service delivery for all Red Cross programs. Consolidated over 500 accounting systems into a single consolidated accounting system. More than 20 years of experience. Licensed CPA in the state of Virginia, Executive Champion of the American Red Cross Latino Resource Group, member of the Latino Executive Steering Committee, and member of the National Hispanic Corporate Council.

Proud to be serving the mission of the American Red Cross, where we strive to save lives and eliminate human suffering every day through the generosity of volunteers and donors.

2024 Association CFO of the Year

Yvonne Bull, Chief Financial Officer
International Fresh Produce Association

Yvonne Bull joined IFPA in 2002 as Director of Finance and was promoted to CFO in 2009. She is responsible for the financial and fiscal management of the association, which includes the general accounting, budgeting, financial reporting, tax, and auditing functions. She also oversees human resources, facility, and information technology functions.

 Yvonne has over twenty years of experience in financial management, having previously served as Finance Director for the Delaware Theatre Company and an Accounting Manager with Brandywine Financial, a real estate investment company.

She holds a Doctorate and a Master of Business Administration from Wilmington University, and a Bachelor’s degree from Goldey-Beacom College, both in Delaware. She is an ordained deacon and active in her church. She has two children, Morgan and Jaeden, three grandchildren, Kennedy, Kaiden and Kam, and along with her husband Tim, resides in New Castle, Delaware.

2024 Philanthropic CFO of the Year

Karen C. Smith, Ed.D, CPA, Chief Financial Officer
The Ministry of Caring Inc.

Karen C. Smith, Ed.D, CPA, is Chief Financial Officer and a Deputy Director of The Ministry of Caring Inc., in Wilmington, Delaware, overseeing an annual budget of about $11 million to  safeguard overall financial health and critical donor confidence in the integrity, transparency and accountability of its 19 programs and six affiliated corporations serving the homeless and poor. Karen oversees finance, payroll, accounts payable, fundraising proceeds and donations, ensuring they are processed promptly and used as requested, as well as the accuracy and compliance of government, corporate and individual grants. She is widely respected for her professionalism and attention to detail in preparing budgets, journal entries, bank reconciliations and financial reports for the Ministry and sponsored corporations, reporting to all their boards of directors, as well as supervising, assisting and mentoring financial staff in grants, payroll and accounts payable to encourage their best performance, teamwork and personal growth.

Her qualifications are impeccable: A long-practicing Certified Public Accountant (CPA) with individual and firm permits, she is a member of the American Institute of CPAs and Delaware Society of CPAs, having earned her Bachelor of Science Degree at Salisbury State College, Master of Business Administration at Wilmington College and Doctor of Education at University of Delaware. Her teaching experience of more than 30 years includes service as a faculty member, instructional coordinator and Chair of the Business Administration Department at Delaware Technical Community College. She also served several years on the Delaware State Board of Accountancy in an appointment by Delaware Governor Jack Markell. 

With such impeccable qualifications, Karen could work anywhere. But in 2016, she chose to help serve the poor, largely because of her lifelong faith and upbringing of giving back, as her late father did mending Salvation Army uniforms and her late mother did sewing clothing for religious sisters. The Ministry of Caring is blessed to have her, said Founder & Executive Director Brother Ronald Giannone, OFM Cap., adding, “Karen Smith has a razor-sharp mind in guarding every charitable dollar to ensure that every penny is used for the benefit of the poor.

Joy Hickey, Director of Finance & Operations
Federation of State Humanities Councils

Joy is the Director of Finance & Operations at the Federation of State Humanities Councils, the national membership organization for the state and jurisdictional humanities councils.  She has worked for the Federation for 6 years and has spent the majority of her career in the non-profit sector.  Joy holds a Bachelor of Science in Finance from George Mason University, a Leading with Finance certificate from Harvard Business School Online, a certificate in American Sign Language from Gallaudet University, and is an MBA Candidate at the University of Wisconsin.  She is a member of the Business Issues Committee of Parents of Autistic Children-NOVA and previously served as Treasurer of the Family Readiness Group at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island and volunteer Coordinator at Virginia German Shepherd Rescue.

Outside of work, you can find her eating her way through new cities and adventuring outdoors with her husband, two kids, and dog.

Ciarra Smith, Director of Finance and Operations
The Hands and Feet

Ciarra Smith is the Director of Operations and Finance for a nonprofit in South Florida called The Hands and Feet. The Hands and Feet deems themselves as DoorDash for foster care and provides basic necessities directly to a child in need within 48 hours of a referral. Ciarra joined Hands and Feet after having a deep passion for the foster care system. Ciarra and her husband were foster parents for 2 years and saw the incredible loss and brokenness in their community.  As a mother to a biological daughter and son and an adoptive son, Ciarra looked for other opportunities to serve families in the world of child welfare and such joined the Hands and Feet. Ciarra originally began with Hands and Feet as a volunteer to help with social media and graphics. When the Co-Founder and Executive Director started asking for financial assistance running the books she realized Ciarra was incredibly gifted in the finance world and immediately hired her to become the Director of Operations and Finance. While Ciarra holds a Bachelor of Science in Intercultural Studies and a Masters in Strategic Ministry, both from Johnson University, she has no official finance training and is completely self-taught. She now runs the entire organization’s almost $ 900,000-a-year budget solely on her own. Ciarra is “the glue that holds us all together” as stated by The Hands and Feet’s Co-Founder. 

PAST HONOREES

2023

• COO of the Year: Justin Waller, US Chamber of Commerce
• Association CFO of the Year: Ann Bittman, Healthcare Distribution Alliance
• Philanthropic Organization CFO of the Year: Rick Robinson, Independent Sector
• Rising Stars: 
  Jessica Mclain, Girl Scout Council Nation’s Capital
  Chase Warden, Land Trust Alliance
  Faides Zilemba, BOMA International

2022

• CFO of the Year: Yvonne Kankam-Boadu, American Speech-Language Hearing Association
• Association CFO of the Year: Brian Green, CPA, CAE, Consumer Healthcare Products Association
• Philanthropic Organization CFO of the Year: Mahomed Ouedraogo, Access Community Health Network
• Rising Stars:
  Christina Hadden, Global Impact
  Zarina Manapova, Airports Council International North America

2021

• CFO of the Year: Eileen Ramage, National Association of Home Builders
• Association CFO of the Year: Dave Fitzsimmons, National Association of Chain Drug Stores, Inc.
• Philanthropic Organization CFO of the Year: John Robertson, Capital Area Food Bank
• Rising Stars:
  Leila Green, Conference of State Bank Supervisors
  Brice Hadden, Managed Funds Association
  Tanisha Lewis, American Association for the Advancement of Science

2019

• CFO of the Year: Joseph Budzynski, Volunteers of America
• Association CFO of the Year: Lisa Haynes, Mortgage Bankers Association
• Philanthropic Organization CFO of the Year: Steve Barker, World Resources Institute
• Rising Stars:
  Zahilys Hernandez, National Retail Federation
  Randy Marsh, Horton’s Kids
  Jessica Sherry, Share Our Strength

2018

• CFO of the Year: Joe Janela, American Pharmacists Association
• Association CFO of the Year: Margie Erinle, Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries
• Philanthropic Organization CFO of the Year: Mary Jane Morrow, Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Washington
• Rising Stars:
  Rick Cohen, National Council of Nonprofits
  Tea Gennaro, Associated Builders & Contractors, Inc
  Zerihun Haile-Selassie, American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages
  Dave Jackson, American Counseling Association
  Warren Sander, Society for Conservation Biology

2017

• CFO of the Year: Guy Sheetz, Futures Industry Association
• Association CFO of the Year: Allison Ingram, Society of Military Engineers
• Philanthropic Organization CFO of the Year: Jim Thomasell, National Parent Teacher Association
• Rising Star: Mark Hornby, Family Career and Community Leaders of America

2016

• CFO of the Year: Deborah Cowan, NPR
• Nonprofit Transformational Leader: Paul Archambeault, Airlines for America
• Rising Star: Carolyn Mollen, Independent Sector

2015

• CFO of the Year: Philip Parisi, United Service Organizations
• Nonprofit Transformational Leaders:
  Paul Vitale, Toy Industry Association
  Tom Tepper, Wilderness Society
• Rising Star: Don Miller, Meals on Wheels America

2014

• CFO of the Year: Stewart Uretsky, Brookings
• Nonprofit Transformational Leaders:
  James Lum, Guide Star
  Sam DiCario, Food Marketing Insitute
• Rising Star: Sara Bannon, American Society of International Law

2013

• CFO of the Year: Marvin Irby, National Restaurant Association
• Nonprofit Transformational Leaders:
  Samantha Barbee, International Youth Foundation
  Forrest Cason, Mental Health Center of Denver
• Rising Star: John Lozitio, Academy of Management

2012

• CFO of the Year: Stanley Berman, Global Impact
• Nonprofit Transformational Leaders: Kimberly McKinnish, National Beer Wholesalers Association
• Rising Star: Jason Daisey, Associated Builders & Contractors, Inc

2010

• Nonprofit CFO Lifetime Achievement Award: Kevin Hardardt, American Gas Association
• Nonprofit CFO Innovator of the Year Award: David Keen, National Association of Counties (NACo)
• Rising Star: Lisa Stewart, Institute for Higher Education Policy

2009

• Nonprofit CFO Lifetime Achievement Award: Moira Fathy Baker, National Science Teachers Association
• Nonprofit CFO Innovator of the Year Award: Christopher Liedel, National Geographic Society
• Rising Star: Alexis George, Bob Woodruff Foundation

2008

• Nonprofit CFO Lifetime Achievement Award: Eileen Frazier, The Jewish Federation of Greater Washington
• Nonprofit CFO Innovator of the Year Award: Jack Deeds, Search for Common Ground
• Rising Star: Stephanie Murphy, Air-conditioning, Heating and Refrigeration Institute

2007

• Nonprofit CFO Lifetime Achievement Award: Kristen Conte, Eugene and Agnes E. Meyer Foundation
• Nonprofit CFO Innovator of the Year Award: Usha Chaudhary, United Way of America
• Rising Star: Abigail Gorman, American Dental Education Association

2006

• Nonprofit CFO Lifetime Achievement Award: Brenda Hargett, American Academy of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery