Emily Callahan
President and Chief Executive Officer
Emily Callahan joined Feed the Children in January 2025 as President and CEO, where she leads the global anti-hunger organization in helping improve food access and security for children and families.
Emily is focused on the vision, strategy and growth plans for the future of the organization and leading the incredible staff and operations made possible by Feed the Children’s generous donors, community partners and other key stakeholders to amplify efforts to provide the food and essentials kids need to grow and thrive.
2029 marks 50 years of Feed the Children’s incredible work. For Emily that milestone is not about the past. It’s all about looking forward, to continue to rise to the challenges ahead as the needs of children around the world are growing rapidly. She is passionate about meeting the increasing needs of children and knows that we have the ability to solve these problems if we all come together now.
Prior to joining Feed the Children, Emily was the first chief marketing officer for ALSAC, the fundraising and awareness organization for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. There she helped grow revenues from $600M to more than $2.5B in 50+ consecutive quarters of growth and led St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital to becoming the Most Trusted brand of any brand in America per Morning Consult.
She was previously SVP of Global Marketing & Networks at Susan G. Komen, where she helped double revenue and led 124+ independently incorporated affiliates through a total rebranding and global expansion. She began her career at Edelman. Emily is known as a global movement builder, empowering people and partners everywhere to raise billions to save millions of lives. She has led key transformation roles for national nonprofits – Susan G. Komen and ALSAC/St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and brings a passion and commitment to empower teams to operate with excellence, trust and accountability.
In addition to her deep experience driving financial growth, she cares deeply about building strong relationships with stakeholders across the communities she serves. She has served as vice chair for ANA (the Association of National Advertisers), vice chair for the Alliance for Inclusive and Multicultural Marketing and is a founder and chair of The Memphis Brand, one of the nation’s only place-based branding initiatives.
She is a gifted strategist, excelling in driving revenue, building iconic brands, developing alliances with Fortune 500 giants, managing P&Ls, navigating complexity, building world class teams and driving thriving cultures through deep relationships. Emily has been recognized for the CMO Club’s CMO Officers Award, PR Week’s Hall of Femme, and the Dallas and Memphis Business Journals’ 40 Under 40 lists for her impactful work.
She is a proud, native Oklahoman.
Bregeita Jefferson
President of FEED International
With her programmatic and organizational expertise, Bre Jefferson leads our international operations, implementing multifaceted projects in diverse cultures and contexts to improve food insecurity, health, education, and livelihoods in the communities we partner with across the globe. For more than 20 years, she has been dedicated to empowering communities and effecting positive changes. Bre’s experience combines programming, enterprise risk management and business development to devise cutting-edge strategies with a keen understanding of local dynamics, creating sustainable solutions that resonate at a global scale.
Beyond her professional accomplishments, Bre remains committed to fostering the next generation of leaders in international development. Her mentorship and advocacy initiatives have equipped individuals with the skills, knowledge, and inspiration to effect change in their communities.
Mike Panas
Chief Information Officer
Michael Panas has served as Chief Information Officer at Feed the Children since 2016. He provides leadership in managing information technology and developing robust and secure technology solutions for our U.S. and international operations. He has led efforts to implement Blackbaud CRM, Qlik Sense BI and Data Analytics, MS 365 E5, managed detection and response, migrations to Azure Cloud and a number of other SaaS solutions.
Under his tenure, the organization has also established in-house IT management capabilities for Information Security and Data Governance. Mike has chaired or maintained membership on the boards of several nonprofits that provide programming in the areas of financial counseling, autism support and community impact.
Colleen Ridenhour
Chief Growth and Strategy Officer
Colleen Finn Ridenhour joined Feed the Children in 2022 as Chief Growth and Strategy Officer, where she leads the organization’s strategic growth initiatives, including fundraising, U.S. program development, and marketing and communication efforts. Recognized by Women We Admire as a top nonprofit leader in 2023 and 2024, Colleen is grateful for the opportunity to engage and inspire future nonprofit leaders to make an impact in the world.
Colleen is passionate about integrating philanthropy, marketing, and program strategies into a unified approach to have a greater impact. In her role, Colleen is responsible for leading Feed the Children’s five-year strategic plan to advance the organization’s mission, growth strategy, and impact as the nonprofit approaches its 50th year milestone anniversary.
Previously, Colleen served as Chief Development Officer at Habitat for Humanity International, overseeing global fundraising and strategic initiatives. Her career includes managing corporate and philanthropic partnerships in the entertainment sector, with leadership roles at E! Entertainment Television, City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center, and St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
Debra Shoaf, CPA
Chief Financial Officer
Debra Shoaf is Feed the Children’s Chief Financial Officer, providing a clear vision and strategic fiscal counsel to our global organization. She works to ensure professional and ethical integrity in upholding the expectations of regulatory agencies and donors. Debra is responsible for advising key stakeholders about important business decisions as we forecast and strategize for the future, while overseeing financial reporting, analysis, and management for the organization.
Prior to joining Feed the Children, Debra served as the Chief Financial Officer for the Atlanta Community Food Bank. While there, she served on the Feeding America Financial Leaders Steering Committee and was the Co-chair of the Recruiting subcommittee. She was selected as the Feeding America Senior Financial Leader of the Year in 2018 and to Forbes’ list of Best Non-Profit CFOs for 2020. She also serves on the Advisory Boards for Rural Development Partners and Accion Opportunity Fund.
Debra has also held senior Finance and Accounting positions at Atlanta Habitat for Humanity, Renfroe Enterprises and Ivan Allen Company. She holds a B.B.A in Accounting from Georgia State University and is a Certified Public Accountant.
Nil Loy
Chief Legal Officer
As Feed the Children’s Chief Legal Officer, Nil Loy helps enable the organization’s bold vision and expansion plans with strategic counsel and leadership, particularly in directing legal, audit and risk, and business continuity functions as the organization continues its growth globally. She partners with and advises leadership, internal and external key stakeholders about critical business decisions as Feed the Children plans for the future and pursues its five-year global strategic plan.
Before joining Feed the Children, Nil served as General Counsel and Corporate Secretary at Population Services International/HealthX Partners Incorporated. There, Nil played a critical role in combining the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation and Population Services International into the newly formed HealthX Partners Incorporated group. She also gained valuable experience in global non-profit and for-profit sectors through her roles as General and Senior Counsel at Vital Strategies, Abt Global, and VeriSign.
Nil earned her Bachelor of Arts and Juris Doctor degrees from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and worked for the North Carolina Supreme Court during her time there. Following her studies, she joined two prestigious international law firms in New York and Washington, D.C.
Board of Directors
Discover more of the leadership shaping our vision—meet the dedicated members of our board of directors who help guide Feed the Children’s mission forward.
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