April 1, 2025
A Message from The Friendship Center’s Board of Directors:
The Board of Directors is thrilled to announce Nadia J. Jiménez as the new Executive Director of The Friendship Center, effective March 24th. With over two decades of experience spanning public health, business operations, development and administration, Nadia brings a wealth of experience to lead The Friendship Center and expand our support for Chicago’s northwest side communities.
Nadia comes to us most recently from Pro Bono Network where she served as the Director of Development, leading fundraising initiatives and establishing strategic partnerships. Some of you might already know Nadia from her early volunteer work at the pantry in the 1990s or have admired her recent leadership at Swedish Hospital as Director of Covid Response and the driving force behind the North Central Region Healthy Chicago Equity Zone.
Nadia brings heartfelt passion for our mission, extensive community engagement skills and a commitment to collaboration and inclusivity to her role as Executive Director. The Board is excited about the opportunity to partner with Nadia to help shape the vision for The Friendship Center’s future growth, while ensuring the continued success of our current efforts to provide food and other vital resources to neighbors in need.
We also extend our deepest gratitude to Justin Block for his dedication and leadership over the last three years, and to the entire team at The Friendship Center for their hard work in ensuring a seamless transition and uninterrupted service to our community. Together, with your continued support, we look forward to an exciting new chapter filled with even greater achievements for our community.