SANTA CRUZ COUNTY—After 12 years at the helm of Grey Bears, executive director Tim Brattan has announced that he will be retiring from his position by the end of 2022.
Grey Bears is a nonprofit aiming to improve the health and well-being of seniors and the greater community through food and meal deliveries, volunteerism, resource conservation and recycling.
Since 1973, its food program has delivered 110 million pounds of food and served more than one million meals to seniors, families, veterans and farmworkers. Grey Bears’ thrift stores, and electronics refurbishing and recycling programs have diverted 250,000 tons of materials from waste streams.
Under Brattan’s leadership, Grey Bears’ programs have expanded, now serving 4,500 seniors and thousands of businesses and residents throughout the county every year.
“The time that I came in was just after the recession of 2008 … Things really spiked, need grew quickly for food distribution and deliveries,” Brattan said. “At the same time, there’s been this tsunami of aging in general across the country. It’s been a really interesting time. The last 12 years have been deeply fulfilling, challenging and exciting.”
Pam Goodman, chair of the Grey Bears Board of Directors, said that Brattan will be “sorely missed,” praising his leadership in growing the organization, including making its location on Chanticleer Avenue the largest senior congregate meal site in the county.
Brattan wrote the successful RFP application for Grey Bears’ recycling center operations at the Buena Vista Landfill and the Ben Lomond Transfer Station, expanded its PS6 (styrofoam) processing and led the rebuild and expansion of its main thrift store.
Goodman added that Brattan was successful in working with County Supervisor Bruce McPherson and the County Public Works Department to offer CRV redemption buyback that returns more than $300,000 to San Lorenzo Valley residents.
“Tim is smart, brave and has greatly grown Grey Bears programs over his 12 years as executive director,” Goodman said. “He is a visionary with tenacity and drive. The day-to-day operations are diverse and challenging. He manages to stay on top of it all. At the same time, he is planning for future projects to better serve seniors and Santa Cruz County residents.”
Brattan said that the most rewarding part of the job has been the people he has worked with, who have helped the organization with every challenge it comes across, from expanding its physical infrastructure to the fallout of the pandemic.
“From the people we serve, to those who work here, our donors, people who bring us donations from their offices and homes,” he said, “and all of our partners in our community who help support our work. We’ve got a fantastic board [of directors], the best we’ve ever had, at least in my tenure. They’re really skilled, with great vision and resources to get us over our next benchmark.”
According to Goodman, the nonprofit’s Executive and Personnel Committees are taking the lead on finding Brattan’s replacement before he leaves in the Fall.
“We’d love to find a leader who has worked here in our county and understands our programs and the unique needs of the populations we serve,” she said. “Tim and the Board are committed to a smooth leadership transition process.”
Brattan said he is tentatively set to leave in October, but the exact date is up in the air. He has plenty of personal projects planned for retirement—he teaches yoga, so he hopes to continue that, and he and his wife will possibly do some traveling.
“Sometimes it’s important to unplug from something that you’re so deeply immersed in for so long in order to get perspective,” he said. “That’s what I’m looking forward to.”
Before then, Brattan says he hopes to aid Grey Bears in continuing to meet the needs of the community.
“Leaving is bittersweet,” he said. “I’ve been thinking about those who came before me for 49 years … I’m only the fourth executive director, which speaks to our organization’s strengths and what a joy it is to be part of it.”
For information on Grey Bears and to view the job announcement visit greybears.org/careers or call 479-1055 ext. 224.
