LEADERSHIP AND BOARD

Leah King was named president and CEO of United Way of Tarrant County in November 2019. As president and CEO, Ms. King provides leadership, sets strategic direction and ensures operational excellence, in accordance with the values and mission of United Way of Tarrant County. She is responsible for all aspects of the organization including fiscal oversight, growing financial support, developing processes and policies, facilitating cross-departmental collaboration and promoting a positive, multi-cultural environment.

Previously, she was executive vice president and chief operating officer. She was responsible for driving the strategic vision and direction of the organization in the areas of workplace campaign, donor relations, community investment, volunteer engagement and the Day of Action program.

Before joining the staff of United Way, Ms. King spent her career in the private sector as a public affairs, community relations, investor relations and marketing professional. A passionate advocate for children, Leah is active in the community. She currently serves as a director for Cook Children’s Medical Center and on the board of governors for the Fort Worth Club. She is also an active member of the Fort Worth (TX) Chapter of The Links, Incorporated. Ms. King is a founding member of the United Way of Tarrant County’s Women United and has served as its Women’s Fund development committee chair.

Jeffrey Allison is an accomplished chief financial officer and senior business executive with career experience in a number of retail, consulting and non-profit organizations. He has demonstrated expertise in building and leading financial, operating and planning teams; designing and implementing business growth strategies; and identifying, mentoring and developing talent.

Prior to his role with United Way of Tarrant County, Jeff was SVP & CFO at Goodwill Industries of Dallas. He has experience in management consulting as the principal of Summit Retail Consulting and as a director with AlixPartners, LLP. He has spent much of his career in corporate finance and retail management, including roles as EVP-GMM and EVP-P&A at JCPenney, Inc., SVP-P&A at Chico’s FAS, Inc., VP-Finance at Express, Inc. and director of FP&A at Limited Brands, Inc.

Jeff is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, an executive member of Financial Executives International and a council member with Gerson Lehrman Group. He earned his CPA from the state of Ohio, and his education includes a Bachelor's of Business Administration in finance from the University of Oklahoma and Master of Business Administration from Texas A&M University. Jeff is also a board member and lead director of Board Development Systems, Inc.

Michelle Bleiberg is chief communications and marketing officer for United Way of Tarrant County where she oversees all external communications including advertising, promotions and public relations to support the marketing objectives and to maximize the positive exposure in local and national markets.

Prior to joining United Way of Tarrant County she was a vice president in the Dallas office of Allison+Partners where she oversaw a portfolio of clients including Navigant Energy, Supplemental Health Care and HighGround Advisors. She has more than 25 years of public relations experience with expertise in thought leadership, corporate reputation, crisis communications, media relations, community relations, event planning and brand positioning. She has served clients and worked in a variety of industries, including entertainment, restaurant and hospitality, healthcare, non-profit, the arts and energy.

Michelle has a Bachelor of Arts in public relations from Texas Tech University. She serves on the Texas Tech National Alumni Association Board of Directors and the Professional Advisory Committee for the Texas Tech College of Media and Communication. In addition, she volunteers at the SPCA of Texas, the Dallas Holocaust Museum/Center for Education and Tolerance and Youth Village.

Beth Watson is executive vice president and chief human resources officer for United Way of Tarrant County where she is responsible for all employee relations across the organization. She joined the organization in the fall of 2017.

In her role, she manages all recruitment, onboarding, talent management, and health and safety programs; ensures organizational and leadership development, performance management and strategic human resource planning; and the creation and implementation of policies. She oversees a competitive compensation and benefits program and ensures compliance with employment-related laws, regulations and best practices.

Before United Way of Tarrant County, Beth served as a human resources consultant for WhitneySmith Company, where she advised clients of diverse sizes and industries regarding human resources best practices.

Ms. Watson received a Bachelor of Business Administration, Management and Marketing from Texas Christian University, Neeley School of Business, and is a certified Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR).

Crystal Sands is the Chief Development Officer for United Way of Tarrant County and manages all development activities for the organization, including strategy, donor communication and volunteer management to help support fundraising objectives and maximize community impact to the most vulnerable populations in Tarrant County.
Prior to joining United Way of Tarrant County, she served as the Vice President of Philanthropy for Youth First, Inc. where she directed all major fundraising efforts, including major gifts, planned giving, annual appeal, events and local, state and federal grants. She has more than 15 years of sales, marketing and customer relations experience, including 13 years in major gift fundraising, corporate sales, business development and strategic planning.
Crystal has a Bachelor of Science degree in marketing from Indiana University, Kelley School of Business. She is a member of the Association of Fundraising Professionals and is also a Veritus Scholar.

Faye Beaulieu, PhD, is the Senior Vice President, Community Investment, for United Way of Tarrant County. She first spent five years with the organization as a volunteer, then was hired as United Way Northeast Project Director in 2003. Her role has expanded to include fundraising and additional oversight responsibility for community programs, including allocations, VITA, Wild About Reading and Mission United, in addition to the two regional steering committees.

Outside United Way, Faye has served the Hurst-Euless-Bedford community for 25 years as a member of the HEB ISD Board of Trustees. She also served 10 years on the Texas Association of School Boards (TASB) Board of Directors, and she chaired that association in 2014.

Currently, Faye serves on a number of boards and committees in the county, including the Northeast Leadership Forum Board of Directors and the JPS Joint Council. She has been a member of the North East Tarrant County branch of the American Association of University Women for more than 20 years, and currently serves as one of two branch presidents.

Faye has a Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts in English from Mississippi University for Women and a PhD in English from the University of Mississippi.

Donald R. Smith is Executive Director of the Area Agency on Aging of Tarrant County and Vice President, Community Investment. Don has 35 years of experience working for health, human service and governmental organizations throughout Texas - including four area agencies on aging.

He has been instrumental during his 15 years at the Area Agency on Aging and United Way in acquiring numerous discretionary grants from the US Administration on Aging and other federal agencies to implement a wide range of innovative community-based initiatives across Texas. While managing the United Way Health portfolio, he led the 10-year cross sector Healthy Aging and Independent Living Initiative that featured a diverse array of evidence-based programs that touched over 50,000 lives.

Don served on the Board of the National Association of Area Agencies on Aging in various leadership capacities and is also on the Executive Committee of the National Evidence Based Leadership Council.

Don received a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from the University of Texas at Tyler, a Bachelor of Science in Gerontology from the University of Texas Southwestern and a Master of Administration in Urban Affairs from the University of Texas at Arlington.