Tupelo/Lee County CREATE Affiliate Has New Name, Directors
Jul 23, 2024 - Tupelo, MS
by: Blake Alsup, Daily Journal
The Tupelo Lee County Community Foundation, which is the Lee County affiliate of the CREATE Foundation, has changed its name to LEAD (Lee County Empowering, Advancing and Developing) and has added two new directors.
Julia Monts will serve as the administrative/operations director and Annabeth Wyatt will serve as the fundraising/public relations director.
Established in 2015, LEAD works to improve the quality of life in Lee County through philanthropy.
"The CREATE team is proud to support the 16 affiliates in our region that identify needs and fund programs to address these areas locally," PK Thomas, director of development for the CREATE Foundation, said in a statement. "Lee County is committed to increasing their capacity with the addition of two dynamic hires and we look forward to seeing the impact they have on the community."
Monts is a former teacher who has experience working with nonprofits. She has served as a lead educator with HealthWorks and as director of donor engagement at United Way.
Wyatt is a former journalist who served as the city of Tupelo's communications director during Mayor Jack Reed Jr.'s administration. She brings 20 years of communications and marketing experience to the role.
Both women said they're honored to join LEAD as it continues to build its legacy of driving positive change with the support of donors, volunteers and partners.
Since its inception nine years ago, LEAD has raised $225,016 in funds and dispersed 175 grants to 78 organizations and initiatives.