Important Message from the Fels Fund Board

Dear Fels Community,

On behalf of the Samuel S. Fels Fund Board, I am writing to share that our President, Sarah Martinez-Helfman, has decided to step down from the foundation in the summer of 2025.

Over the past nine years, Sarah has been a truly transformational leader in Philadelphia, completely shifting the strategy and work of the organization to be grounded in the principles of trust-based philanthropy, community, and the never-ending pursuit of racial equity and social justice. Sarah’s leadership and impact can be understood through the changed composition of the Board, staff, and investments during her tenure, the values adopted and embedded across the organization, and the millions of dollars she leveraged from peer funders in support of Fels’ grantee partners. The result is an organization that is more deeply connected to the communities Fels serves, and the systems and institutions it seeks to transform. 

She has elevated the profile of Fels, locally and nationally, played a key role in transforming the endowment to be a values-aligned instrument in service to impact, and most importantly, advanced our grantmaking and investing work with grace, humility, and courage. Prior to joining Fels, Sarah was the founding Executive Director of the Eagles Charitable Foundation, where she built programs across vision care, literacy, and play spaces for more than one million children. During her tenure, the Philadelphia Eagles were recognized as the best professional sports team in the world for community programs. Throughout her career, her dedication and passion for partnering with leaders to leave the world a bit better than she found it have remained consistent.

We are deeply grateful for her vision, commitment, and invaluable contributions to advancing the mission of Fels. Under her leadership, the Foundation has made meaningful strides, and her legacy will undoubtedly guide us forward. We extend our heartfelt thanks to Sarah as she continues to lead Fels through June 2025.

To ensure a smooth transition, the Foundation’s Board has engaged Bridge Partners Executive Search to lead a comprehensive national search for our next President. To learn more about this opportunity, please review the job posting and/or contact:

Toya Lawson | Partner, Bridge Partners | Toya.Lawson@bridgepartnersllc.com

Neeta Mehta | Partner, Bridge Partners | Neeta.Mehta@bridgepartnersllc.com

Sincerely,

Fariha Khan, Board Chair

Samuel S. Fels Fund