Lovelace is the previous executive director of the
Morehead-Cain Foundation in Chapel Hill, a position he held for 33 years until his retirement last year.
Born in Waynesville and raised in Plymouth, NC, he received a bachelor’s degree and a master’s in business administration from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Lovelace currently serves on the Board of Trustees of Durham Academy and on the Board of Advisors for the Kenan Institute for Private Enterprise. He and his wife, Karen, live in Chapel Hill.
Sears is the CEO and founder of
Out Leadership, a strategic advisory firm dedicated to extending equality and access to opportunity for LGBTQ+ leaders globally.
Sears began his career as an investment banker before joining Merrill Lynch as a financial advisor. There, he created the first team of financial advisors in Wall Street focused on the LGBTQ+ community. Subsequently, Sears pioneered award-winning diversity initiatives at Merrill Lynch and then at Credit Suisse.
A Tarboro native and a Duke University graduate, Sears serves on various nonprofit boards, including the Williams Institute of UCLA, the Palette Fund, the Global Equality Fund of the U.S. Department of State, Lambda Legal Defense & Education Fund, and the National Advisory Council of the Stonewall National Archives & Museum. He is also the founding chair of Jeffrey Fashion Cares, which he led for a decade.
Steve W. Wangerin, chair of the foundation’s Board of Directors, said the foundation was fortunate to have Lovelace and Sears serve on the statewide board.
“Both Chuck and Todd have strong North Carolina roots and bring valuable insights to our board,” he said. “We’re excited to work with them as we plan for what’s next for NCCF.”
Additionally, Laura Beasley is stepping down after a decade on the board. Beasley, of Colerain, served as chairperson of the board’s Grants Committee for six years. Beasley has also served on the board of the Bertie-Hertford Community Foundation since 1999 and is a founding member of the Bertie-Hertford Women’s Fund.
“Laura has been a strong leader and advocate for NCCF’s network of affiliate foundations,” Wangerin said. “She has served tirelessly, leading our grantmaking through several hurricanes and a pandemic. We are grateful for her contributions to the foundation and the state.”
About the North Carolina Community Foundation
The North Carolina Community Foundation (NCCF) is the single statewide community foundation serving North Carolina and has administered more than
$217 million in grants since its inception in 1988. With more than
$400 million in assets, NCCF sustains more than
1,200 endowments established to provide long-term support of a broad range of community needs, nonprofit organizations, institutions and scholarships.
NCCF partners with a network of affiliate foundations to provide local resource allocation and community assistance across the state. An important component of NCCF’s mission is to ensure that rural philanthropy has a voice at the local, regional and national levels. For more information, visit
nccommunityfoundation.org.
Media contact
Amy Dominello Braun, Senior Communications & Marketing Officer
abraun@nccommunityfoundation.org, 919-256-6922