Meet John Hecklinger! GFC’s President and CEO shares his professional journey and what drew him to GFC.

CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT WHERE YOU’RE FROM AND ABOUT YOUR BACKGROUND?

I was born in New York City, but grew up in the Virginia suburbs of Washington, DC. My mom was a high school English teacher at Robert E. Lee High School, thankfully renamed John R. Lewis High School a couple of years ago. My dad was the head of counseling at Northern Virginia Community College (NOVA) in Alexandria and eventually became Dean. NOVA is famous for being where First Lady Jill Biden teaches English! I followed in my parents’ footsteps and studied English in college and graduate school and ended up teaching at Santa Fe Community College in Gainesville, Florida for a time. Then I went off to the Peace Corps in the Central African Republic, teaching at the University of Bangui. That’s where life took a turn that ended up with me joining Global Fund for Children many years later.  

WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE CHILDHOOD MEMORY?

I used to love the family vacations we took in the summer – one week at Hilton Head Island in South Carolina, then one week visiting grandparents in Winter Park, Florida, then back to Hilton Head for another week. We still go to Hilton Head every year.

HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN WITH GFC? WHAT DREW YOU TO THIS LINE OF WORK, AND WHY HAVE YOU STUCK AROUND?

I’ve been with GFC since November of 2017. I first encountered GFC when I was with GlobalGiving, where I worked in various roles for 12 years. I always appreciated GFC’s ability to find amazing grassroots organizations, and I was able to drive them considerable support while at GlobalGiving. When the opportunity to lead GFC presented itself, it was the right time for me and a very good fit.

WHAT HAS BEEN THE MOST CHALLENGING PART OF YOUR JOB? WHAT HAS BEEN THE MOST SATISFYING?

Steering the organization through a lot of change in my first couple of years was a challenge and a really great learning experience. And the most satisfying thing is seeing how those changes we made in early years led to a lot of positive results. We have great relationships with our partners, and we’re growing and becoming more sophisticated in how we operate.

WHY DO YOU BELIEVE GFC’S WORK IS IMPORTANT?

We’ve got to change the fact that truly local organizations are cut off from the funding and other resources they need. The whole system of philanthropy and global development needs reform, and GFC has been at the forefront of changing the way things work since its founding almost 30 years ago. Our ideas are taking root, and things are changing, but we have a long way to go. All the world’s problems (climate change, conflict, pandemics, etc.) affect young people disproportionately, and demographics show that an incredibly large percentage of the global population is young. It’s urgent for anyone in a position to help to focus efforts on young people.

#FunFacts

WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE TOY GROWING UP?

Matchbox cars, and eventually Atari.

WHAT DID YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU GREW UP?

A marine biologist, a dad, or a doctor.

WHAT DO YOU DO FOR FUN?

I love watching my boys compete in sports – basketball, lacrosse, and swimming at the moment.  I also like trail running, cycling, gardening, and cooking.

DO YOU HAVE ANY PETS?

We have a sheepadoodle named Pearl and, at the moment, we have a goldfish my older son won at the county fair, which has miraculously survived an entire month.

IF YOU COULD HAVE ANY SUPERPOWER, WHAT WOULD IT BE? 

Moving objects with my mind, which to me includes flying, as you can move yourself with your mind too. My golf game would be super, and I could help people in all sorts of interesting ways.