Dearest AYA Family,
It is with great joy that I share the news that AYA Foundation has hired the organization’s second full-time employee. Tonoa Manuel joined the foundation’s staff on January 2 as chief operating officer (COO).
As you may know, Tonoa has served as a part-time contract consultant to AYA Foundation since we began operations in 2021. From her contractor role, Tonoa supported AYA’s programs, and served as my thought partner in just about all the work we have accomplished thus far. This is why she is the perfect pick for COO.
In her new role, Tonoa will be responsible for overseeing and executing the overall operations of the foundation. This includes not only programs, but also, organizational infrastructure, scale, and impact.
Hiring a second full-time employee within the first three years of start-up seems logical, but truth be told, it is nearly impossible to accomplish for many nonprofits. This scale-up did not come about by happenstance. We envisioned it, planned it and created the roadmap necessary to accomplish it. We could have chosen to build more programs, but we intentionally chose to build capacity, because capacity is the vehicle for growth. The Board of Directors encouraged it, supported it, and approved it.
This, is how we build Black institutions.
I am personally thrilled to welcome a day-to-day partner in this work. Even better when that partner knows our history, knows our organization, and is no stranger to the plight and mindset of entrepreneurs. We get to hit the ground running.
Happy New Year to you, to me, to Tonoa, to AYA, and to our beautiful community of entrepreneurs, supporters and friends. 2025 is already looking great!
Stay well,
Benny