The Friends of the Domes Names Christa Beall Diefenbach as Its New Executive Director

Milwaukee, Wis., Nov. 10, 2021 – The Friends of the Domes Board of Directors began an extensive search for an executive director following the anticipated retirement of Sally Sullivan, 14-year employee and the first person to hold the executive director position. The Board recently announced the selection of Christa Beall Diefenbach. She began serving in this role in October 2021, with the assistance of Sally Sullivan to ensure a smooth transition.

Beall Diefenbach brings a wealth of experience to the position. Most recently she was a strategic consultant of a nonprofit-focused marketing firm. In this position, she assisted national nonprofit organizations with designing and implementing strategic marketing initiatives, including leveraging new technologies to achieve greater mission impact.

Beall Diefenbach’s unique background positions her to bring the organization business and leadership components necessary for the role, while exemplifying a true commitment to and understanding of the Friends of the Domes’ mission. She has a Master of Business Administration from North Park University and a Bachelor of Journalism from the University of Missouri. In addition to working many years as a strategic consultant, Beall Diefenbach served as vice president of mission engagement for the Nonprofit Leadership Alliance in Kansas City, Mo. In this role, she oversaw strategy and execution of marketing, fundraising, and new product development for a national nonprofit capacity-building organization. Moreover, Beall Diefenbach taught graduate and undergraduate courses in nonprofit management and marketing for the past decade.

Beall Diefenbach believes that connecting and establishing mutually beneficial partnerships with the community is essential and has managed effective partnerships with such organizations as The Bridge Youth & Family Services in the Chicago area, Family Service of Roanoke Valley in Roanoke, Va., Advocate Charitable Foundation in Chicago, The Youth Campus child welfare agency in Chicago and the March of Dimes in Kansas City, Mo.

The Friends of the Domes provides educational and membership programming, retail services, funds for facility enhancements, and volunteer recruitment and management in support of the Mitchell Park Horticultural Conservatory, and has done so since the 1980s. Revenues to support this mission come from fundraising, membership dues and retail sales. All Friends programming works to enhance the visitor experience, helping the community cultivate a lifelong love of nature. Friends of the Domes members receive free admission to the Domes as well as many additional benefits such as member-only event access and discounts for educational programming.

Planning is underway for the next phase of this long-time Milwaukee attraction, and Christa Beall Diefenbach will lead the Friends of the Domes in guiding its ambitious future path with the County. “Christa is a visionary and collaborator who is ideally suited to lead the organization,” said Jeremy Guth, president of the Friends of the Domes Board of Directors and chair of the executive director search committee. “Her extraordinary success in the nonprofit industry, passion for the Friends’ mission, and focus on what matters in people’s lives made her the unanimous choice for the role. We are delighted to have Christa guide us through our strategic plan for the future.”

“I am thrilled by the opportunity to lead an organization I admire deeply,” said Christa Beall Diefenbach. “I look forward to listening to and learning about the needs of the Friends of the Domes’ stakeholders to help increase the organization’s scale and impact.”

The Friends of the Domes is a private nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization established in 1989. The Friends of the Domes directly channels resources that make possible many of the educational, scientific and cultural programs held at the Mitchell Park Horticultural Conservatory. Support complements but is separate from the support provided by Milwaukee County.

The Friends of the Domes mission is to promote and support the Mitchell Park Horticultural Conservatory (the “Domes”) and surrounding park by creating and enhancing the visitor experience of this globally significant urban destination. For more information about the Friends of the Domes, visit www.milwaukeedomes.org

NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.