The Newport Beach-based Orange County Community Foundation (OCCF) has added Ambassador Gaddi Vasquez to its Board of Governors.
This leadership position is critical to OCCF’s Vision 2024 goals, including a bold aim to reach $1 billion in cumulative granting by 2024, becoming one of only 35 community foundations in the U.S. ever to reach that milestone.
Vazquez brings to the OCCF Board more than 25 years of leadership posts in local, state, and federal government during a highly-distinguished career of public service, in addition to senior leadership roles in the private sector, including for Edison International and Southern California Edison, one of the nation’s largest investor-owned utilities.
He joins an energetic team of community business leaders and philanthropic advisers to ensure effective oversight and guidance of OCCF’s mission.
“I am honored to join the Orange County Community Foundation Board of Governors,” said Vazquez. “Working alongside these dynamic individuals and helping advance the mission of the Community Foundation is special to me. I was born to a family of migrant workers and forged a path to success thanks to others who saw my potential and believed in me. I am thrilled to support OCCF’s efforts to forge pathways that will help all Orange County residents have the opportunity to thrive.”
Previously, Vasquez served as senior vice president of government affairs for Edison International and Southern California Edison (SCE), one of the nation’s largest investor-owned utilities.
Before joining SCE in 2009, he served as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations agencies based in Rome, Italy including the World Food Program and the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization.
He was director of the United States Peace Corps from 2002 to 2006. Early in his career, he served as an Orange County supervisor, as chief deputy appointments secretary to Governor George Deukmejian, and as a police officer for the City of Orange.
He currently sits on the boards for the Public Policy Institute of California, Segerstrom Center for the Performing Arts, the Aspen Institute Latinos and Society program, the Board of Governors for the California State University Foundation, the UCI Foundation Board of Trustees and the Board of Trustees of Chapman University.
“We are honored and pleased to welcome Gaddi to OCCF’s Board of Governors,” said Shelley Hoss, president and CEO of the Orange County Community Foundation. “His combination of public and private sector experience is unparalleled and will help drive OCCF’s impact on the Orange County community, philanthropists and nonprofit partners we serve. More importantly, he is a compassionate man with a desire to help others and pave a way for those dreaming of their own bright futures.”
OCCF has served as a resource for philanthropists and their families for more than 30 years by offering unique insights, deep knowledge, and a diverse array of giving opportunities. To learn more about the Orange County Community Foundation, visit www.oc-cf.org.
