“Do Work Worth Doing.”
Vicki Weiland is a passionate, strategic, and visionary nonprofit leader whose career has been defined by one clear throughline: doing work worth doing. With more than 35 years of executive experience, she has led, grown, and transformed mission-driven organizations across health, education, and social impact sectors. From building fledgling divisions into national exemplars to designing high-impact fundraising programs and cultivating major donors, she brings a rare combination of financial acumen, relational depth, and unwavering commitment to positive and meaningful outcomes.
Vicki’s leadership journey began in earnest with The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, where she spent fifteen years shaping and elevating the Northern California Division. When she stepped into the role, the organization’s presence in the region was comparatively immature; under her direction, it became the most successful division the Society had ever seen. She grew annual revenue from $800,000 to more than $20 million, while expanding operations from one office serving 21 counties to three offices serving 25 counties. In addition to managing up to 120 staff members, she also played a national role, envisioning and launching multiple fundraising programs and serving on strategic task forces and councils that shaped the Society’s future direction.
Her success at The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society culminated in national recognition. Vicki’s division consistently ranked at the top of the organization for fundraising performance, and she was recognized by the National Board of Directors as the top fundraising chapter executive in the history of the organization, responsible for more than $120 million raised overall. She led the nation in the development and fundraising performance of the Society’s flagship Team in Training program, demonstrating her capacity not only to operationalize large-scale initiatives, but to cultivate the volunteer, donor, and community ecosystems that sustain them. She also served as acting Executive Director in chapters without leadership, formally mentoring other Executive Directors and modeling the standard for excellence in nonprofit management.
Building on this extraordinary foundation in health-focused philanthropy, Vicki took on the role of Executive Director of the Greater Bay Area Chapter of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF). There, she demonstrated her hallmark ability to take a successful organization to “far greater heights.” She developed and implemented the chapter’s first five-year strategic plan, aligning vision, operations, and revenue goals. Over six years, she helped raise $55 million to advance breakthroughs in Type 1 diabetes research, securing transformational gifts—including a $5 million individual gift early in her tenure and an $8 million gift in her final year – as well as delivering special events generating seven figures. Under her leadership, income grew by nearly 50 percent. Additionally, Vicki, founded a $1 million+ major gift group of chapters that became a national model for JDRF’s mega donor investment program.
Vicki’s work with JDRF also extended into leadership development and organizational strategy. As a founding member of the inaugural JDRF Academy, she both benefited from and contributed to executive training programs designed to shape the next generation of leaders within the Foundation. Her role in this initiative reflects a broader theme in her career: she does not simply manage organizations, she helps architect their future—through thoughtful strategy, vision, mentoring, and an unwavering focus on mission.
Her next major chapter unfolded at The Chaplaincy Institute, an interfaith seminary and community where she served as Executive Director and CEO. There, Vicki led the organization through a crucial shift from founder-led to founder-inspired, a nuanced and often delicate transition that demands both respect for legacy and clarity of future direction. She built the operational infrastructure necessary for sustainable growth, including financial and customer management systems, clarified staff and board roles, and crafted robust communication vehicles. She recruited and developed the organization’s first Board of Directors and guided the creation of its first strategic plan, establishing a governance and strategic framework that would support its continued evolution.
At The Chaplaincy Institute, Vicki also brought her longstanding strength in fundraising and program development to bear. She helped secure and steward a significant seminary partner, substantially increasing student enrollment. She designed admissions and sales processes that enabled systematic outreach and communication with prospective students, translating into meaningful growth. Simultaneously, she developed and scaled a donor development program, including major gifts and an annual giving program, ensuring that the seminary’s mission of interfaith spiritual education and service could be sustained and expanded.
Returning to a more dedicated development focus, Vicki became the Director of Development at The Carol Emmott Foundation, an organization devoted to accelerating gender equity and diversity in healthcare leadership. In this role, she was tasked with something both strategic and cultural: envisioning and leading the implementation of a philanthropic mindset within a fee-for-service environment. Over three years, she increased average annual donations revenue by an extraordinary 430 percent. She secured the Foundation’s largest and first-ever multi-year individual major gift of $300,000 in her first year, coordinated high-impact donor events—including a solicitation event that generated $244,000—and secured the organization’s first planned gift, establishing a nascent endowment.
Vicki’s more recent work as Director of Development at the Stone Research Foundation continued this theme of bringing value to organizations working at the intersection of health, science, and human well-being. At the Stone Research Foundation, she directed fundraising efforts to support pioneering orthopedic research and treatments that accelerate healing and help people remain active. In this capacity, she built and nurtured relationships with major donors and prospects, aligning their philanthropic interests with breakthrough research that meaningfully improves lives. Her ability to understand complex scientific missions and translate them into compelling philanthropic narratives underscores her versatility and depth as a development leader.
Complementing her formal executive roles, Vicki has engaged in work that reflects a deeply integrated sense of care, ethics, and service. As Director of Senior Care Services in an independent capacity, she provided highly personalized oversight for seniors, coordinating legal, financial, medical, and end-of-life arrangements with professionals ranging from attorneys and physicians to social workers and real estate experts. She served as Power of Attorney, Health Care Agent, Executor, and Trustee, guiding individuals and families through some of life’s most complex and emotionally charged transitions. Her work often meant identifying eligibility for critical benefits, managing estates, and ensuring dignified end-of-life plans—demonstrating a profound commitment to integrity, compassion, and responsibility beyond traditional nonprofit metrics.
Vicki’s background also includes experience as a life coach and volunteer development consultant. In her private coaching practice, she supported clients in exploring and deepening their life experiences, bringing the same attentive listening, insight, and encouragement that she brings to staff, donors, and board members. As a volunteer Development Consultant with the HeartMath Institute, she helped executive leadership analyze fundraising history and shape strategies to reach the next level of funding success. These roles highlight her ability to engage at both the personal and organizational levels, always with an eye towards alignment, growth, and meaningful impact.
Her formal education and leadership development journey is equally robust and multi-dimensional. Vicki completed leadership programs through the Center for Creative Leadership and Columbia University Business School, strengthening her skills in organizational leadership, strategic thinking, and executive decision-making. She holds a certificate in Business Administration from Diablo Valley College, grounding her leadership in sound financial and operational understanding. Additionally, her certificate in Interfaith Spiritual Direction from The Chaplaincy Institute reflects her holistic view of leadership as both a professional and spiritual calling, particularly relevant in mission-driven environments where values, meaning, and community are central.
Throughout her career, Vicki has managed complex budgets of up to $20 million annually, led teams of up to 120 people across multiple locations, and staffed and developed numerous Boards of Directors and volunteer committees. She has designed and executed diverse fundraising portfolios—annual giving, major gifts, planned giving, endowed programs, corporate partnerships, and large-scale signature events—and consistently exceeded ambitious goals. Beyond the numbers, she is known for cultivating relationships grounded in authenticity and trust, building strong board and investor partnerships, and fostering collaborative, high-performing cultures. Her experience working with international organizations focused on children with cancer or diabetes adds global context to her otherwise predominantly domestic career, and she remains open to travel in support of meaningful missions.
At her core, Vicki is mission-agnostic but profoundly mission-forward. She is less concerned with sector labels than with the question, “Is this work making a real difference?” Her personal motto, “Do work worth doing,” encapsulates a life spent leveraging her gifts in leadership, fundraising, strategic visioning, and relationship-building to advance organizations that transform lives. Whether guiding a nonprofit through strategic expansion, stewarding a multimillion-dollar gift, serving seniors at vulnerable moments, or mentoring emerging leaders, she brings integrity, clarity, and heart. For boards and organizations seeking a seasoned, values-driven leader who can unite vision with execution and strategy with humanity, Vicki Weiland offers an exceptional, field-tested blend of experience, insight, and purpose.
Character:
Vicki exemplifies character through her consistent commitment to mission-driven work and her guiding principle of “Do Work Worth Doing.” She has demonstrated integrity by stewarding major gifts, complex budgets, and sensitive senior care responsibilities with transparency, responsibility, and empathy. Colleagues, donors, and community partners experience her as authentic, trustworthy, and deeply dedicated to the people and missions she serves.
Knowledge:
Over more than three decades of leadership, Vicki has built a profound knowledge base in nonprofit management, fundraising, board governance, and organizational development. Her education in leadership, business administration, and spiritual direction complements her practical experience managing multimillion-dollar budgets and leading large, distributed teams. She continuously deepens her understanding of best practices in philanthropy and nonprofit effectiveness, allowing her to design and execute sophisticated strategies that drive meaningful results.
Strategic:
Vicki’s creative and strategic capabilities are evident in her development and implementation of long-range plans that transformed organizations’ financial health, operational infrastructure, and impact. She has repeatedly led organizations through growth inflection points, from building new boards and governance structures to launching national fundraising programs and donor investor groups. Her ability to align vision, resources, and people positions organizations to thrive sustainably, rather than simply succeed in the short term.
Communication:
As a seasoned public speaker, fundraiser, and executive, Vicki communicates with clarity, confidence, and warmth across diverse audiences. She translates complex missions—whether in healthcare, spiritual education, or senior care—into compelling narratives that inspire donors, boards, staff, and community stakeholders. Her communication style is rooted in active listening and authenticity, enabling her to build strong relationships and foster trust in every environment she enters.
