COTS Appoints New Board Members, Hires Fundraising Staff

COTS Committee on the Shelterless has appointed two new board members and hired two new employees to assist the nonprofit in bringing in money for its work with the homeless.

The new appointees include Bill Schrader, president and CEO of Exchange Bank and Joel Humphries, restaurant project manager and coordinator for charitable events at Amy’s Kitchen.

On the development side, COTS has hired Courtney Comer as the director of Major Gifts and Kristin Nelson as the Director of Leadership Giving and Events. Comer previously worked for St. Joseph Health Systems/Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital and Nelson was employed at WestEd, an education policy agency, and the James Irvine Foundation.

Like other nonprofits working in the housing arena, COTS is facing unprecedented funding shortages due to the elimination of redevelopment agencies and is shifting toward private and individual giving.

“Our new board members and development staff exemplify the combination of head and heart that has made COTS successful, and their commitment to the mission of the organization will ensure COTS’ long-term viability,” said Executive Director John Records. 

Schrader has spent most of his professional life at Exchange Bank, working his way up to President and CEO from his first job as loan review officer. He started his career with the Comptroller of the Currency where he worked for five years before coming to Exchange Bank.

Schrader is a Director for the California Bankers Association and has taken on leadership roles in numerous professional organizations and non-profits, including the Hanna Boys Center, the YMCA, the Santa Rosa Community Health Center, Roseland University Prep, the Santa Rosa Chamber of Commerce, and the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill. 

Humphries joins the COTS board after creating and coordinating a program that supplies COTS’ Petaluma Kitchen with surplus food from Amy’s, his family’s business. A Petaluma resident for 15 years, Mr. Humphries’ professional experience includes work as a stock broker, a financial planner and a litigation consultant.