From the Praxis team:
We want to share some exciting but bittersweet news with you. After a period of mutual discernment and prayer, Praxis co-founder Josh Kwan has accepted an amazing opportunity to be the new President of The Gathering, a leading community of Christian philanthropists who have been meeting together for over 30 years under the stewardship of friend and Praxis Mentor Fred Smith.
As you may know, over the past few years Praxis has been fortunate to host the conclusion of our Nonprofit Accelerator at the same site as The Gathering’s annual conference. Perhaps it goes without saying, but it is our plan that through this transition we’ll continue to have the opportunity to work together in this way. Much of why this collaboration has been possible is a result of Josh’s decade-plus, trust-building relationship with Fred, which opened the door for this role conversation.
It’s natural in a departure like this to wonder if the co-founders and/or team had a falling out, but that can’t be further from the truth for us. We plan to be lifelong friends, praying for each other and wishing the best for Praxis and for The Gathering. While we will deeply miss Josh and his incredible spirit, he is clearly a great fit for this next task, given his experience in philanthropy, longstanding trust with The Gathering’s team and board, pulse on the next generation of philanthropic leaders, and experiences with Praxis at the edge of redemptive entrepreneurship.
We’re not only writing to share the news, but also to make this transition as seamless as possible for our community of collaborators and advocates. To this end, we want to make sure you know of Mary Elizabeth Goodell, our Community Manager. She will be helping continue to build and connect leaders across the Praxis ecosystem.
Additionally, we are actively recruiting top talent for two new positions in our NYC headquarters: an Internal Operations Lead and a Venture Programs Associate.
Josh will be reachable via Praxis through the end of the year as he completes and hands off his work with us. We’ll have the chance to both plan with him and also celebrate all the ways he has blessed us and Praxis. We’ll miss him tremendously, as he’ll miss the work and the team at Praxis. At the same time, we both feel fortunate to be making this transition in such a positive way, knowing that Praxis programs are thriving, the community continues to grow, and our team is well prepared to continue our mission in advancing redemptive entrepreneurship.
Blessings and thanks for your friendship,
Dave, Josh, and the Praxis Team