Family House San Francisco announces the appointment of Katherine Thompson as Chief Executive Officer. Thompson will join the organization on August 1, 2023 and will oversee all aspects of Family House San Francisco’s operations and efforts to provide state-of-the-art family-centered care for critically ill children and their families. Family House San Francisco CEO Alexandra E. Morgan is retiring and will stay on in an advisory capacity through the end of 2023.

Founded in 1981, Family House San Francisco serves as a home away from home for families of children with cancer and other life-threatening illnesses being treated at UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital.  Located in San Francisco’s Mission Bay neighborhood, Family House San Francisco is the five-story, 80-bedroom facility that sustains an over 100% occupancy rate, houses more than 250 people per night and  serves 4,000 families per year.

Thompson brings more than 20 years of experience in nonprofit administration, development, and communications, with a focus on building community. She joins Family House San Francisco after more than ten years working for Grace Cathedral where she led development, communications, and arts programming. She helped the Cathedral and its leaders grow its fundraising programs, expand its global reach, and improve its civic engagement.

“Katherine loves big ideas, great teams and believes building communities is essential to the human spirit,” said Todd Kovacevich, chair of the Family House San Francisco Board of Directors. “We look forward to welcoming Katherine to the Family House community.”

“Family House is the most generous expression of compassion and hospitality that I’ve experienced in our welcoming city, made possible by an extraordinarily committed staff, board, and community,” said Thompson. “Becoming a leader in this mission is the honor of a lifetime, and I’m grateful for the deep spirit of philanthropy that grounds its past, present, and future.”

Thompson succeeds Alexandra E. Morgan, who announced her retirement earlier this year, after leading Family House through extraordinary growth for more than 22 years. During that time, Morgan fulfilled Family House founder Dr. Arthur Ablin’s vision of providing free housing and basic needs for the families of seriously ill young patients.  Morgan grew the organization from its roots in the Sunset neighborhood into the facility in Mission Bay.

Volunteering with SFMOMA led Thompson to professional fundraising roles with MOCA Cleveland and Case Western Reserve University. She cares about LGBTQIA+ causes, and she belongs to the Association of Fundraising Professionals. Early in her career, she held marketing roles with Wells Fargo, Stern Marketing and Charles Schwab, where she learned about building brands and values-based cultures.

Katherine earned a B.A. in Political Science from the University of California at Santa Barbara. She lives in San Rafael with her husband, Jeff, their daughter, Clementine, and their Aussiedoodle, Ohgee.