Gregory Grabowski
President/CEO — Leader Dogs for the Blind
Gregory Grabowski has been president and CEO of Leader Dogs for the Blind since January 2, 2008. Grabowski provides vision, leadership and management to Leader Dog with primary emphasis on strategic direction, philanthropy, public/community relations, and programs & services. He ensures a high performing, outcomes-oriented, mission-driven and financially stable organization.
Prior to coming to Leader Dog, Grabowski was the vice president at the National Hospice Foundation in Alexandria, Virginia, where he was responsible for all strategic and operational components of the National Hospice Foundation (NHF), which include raising funds and administering distribution for the Diana Legacy Fund. As the national/international charity for end-of-life care, NHF funds a variety of projects, including educational activities, research, global hospice partnerships, grief and bereavement programs and quality hospice initiatives. A main highlight was working with Archbishop Desmond Tutu on the inaugural celebration of the Diana Legacy Fund, which was established with a grant from the Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fund in London.
Before coming to the National Hospice Foundation, Grabowski was the senior vice president and chief marketing & community relations officer for Hospice of Michigan. His responsibilities included: fundraising, public relations, internal and external communications, government relations, compliance, quality, marketing and new business development. Grabowski was selected by Crain's Detroit Business as a recipient of their 2005 40 Under 40 award. He and Hospice of Michigan's other senior vice presidents comprised the organization's chief operating officers.
Grabowski served as Hospice of Michigan's corporate development director and vice president for development and communications before he was promoted to senior vice president in January 2002. Under his three-year leadership as corporate development director, the organization mounted several high profile donor and public awareness events and he was part of the founding team establishing the Maggie Allesee Center for Quality Life. The center was established by a three million dollar gift and is a one-of-a-kind research and development department established under Grabowski’s leadership. One of the most notable events has been the Mask Project, a traveling exhibit showcasing and auctioning the artwork of national and international celebrities, raising more than one million dollars in the two years it has been carried out. During his tenure as vice president, he successfully reorganized the communications department, culminating with the communications team winning the 2003 Top Two-Color Newsletter award from Ragan Communications.
Before joining Hospice of Michigan, Grabowski was vice president for advancement and alumni relations at Catholic Central High School in Redford, Michigan. From 1996 to 1997, he was director of partnerships at Cornerstone Schools in Detroit where he gained substantial community relations and development experience. Prior to that, Grabowski was a registered representative for investments and insurance and sales representative for a reproductions company, attaining valuable experience in marketing and sales.
With the help of an outstanding group of volunteers and staff, Grabowski has developed innovative capital campaigns, annual donations, endowment contributions and events support totaling more than 62 million dollars in his career as a development professional.
Grabowski was a member of the Hospice of Michigan Foundation board of trustees and an officer of the Hospice of Michigan nonprofit corporation. He has served on the boards of the Rochester Community Schools Foundation and the Brush Park Development Corporation. He is a graduate of Leadership Detroit, a Certified Hospice Administrator, former faculty member of Nonprofit Enterprises at Work in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and is a featured speaker on hospice, philanthropy and leadership around the country. Additionally, he has been an active member of the Association for Fundraising Professionals and was highlighted in the Chronicle of Philanthropy June 2004 issue for his innovative partnerships with corporations.
On an athletic scholarship for tennis, Grabowski earned a Bachelor of General Studies degree in 1991 from Oakland University with minors in business management and communications arts, and studied at the College of William and Mary's National Planned Giving Institute in 1995. He lives in Rochester Hills, Michigan, with his wife Christina and their three children.