Cathy Cooney has lived in the Flathead for 21 years, but she spent so much of that time traveling across Montana that she often joked she knew more people in Forsyth than in Bigfork.

“I think my biggest achievement, probably of my life, is getting to all 56 counties in Montana multiple times,” said Cathy, who logged all that road time over a decade providing programs and technical assistance to Montana Community Foundation’s local community foundation affiliates. “Very few people can say they did that.”

Now, after 21 years with MCF, Cathy will depart this month to explore new professional opportunities in the nonprofit sector.

Cathy joined MCF in 2005 after eight years working at a community foundation in California. After a year and a half leading the Women’s Foundation of Montana, she transitioned to working with local community foundations across the state.

“There's so many wonderful people living in those rural communities and I really enjoyed working with them,” Cathy said. “Our local community foundation program is just wonderful, and that's where we put so much of our time and our resources, and I think it's a great investment.”

After 12 years of watching local community foundations grow and cultivate gifts that allowed them to support major projects, Cathy was ready for a change — and a little less time on the road. Seeing a need to support donors with established funds at MCF, she stepped into the role of Director of Donor Services.

“The best thing about donor services is that it's about building a relationship with people,” Cathy said. “It’s been a real privilege to get to know people and see the interesting range of charitable interests. Once you open an endowment, you're part of the MCF family.”

Cathy will continue her volunteer role as fundraising coordinator for the Bigfork Food Bank.

“It was really good to be able to explore the whole state of Montana because I learned so much,” Cathy said of her time at MCF. “It’s an important story for us to be able to tell about legacy giving and being able to preserve rural communities is so important.”