Part of what makes the Bringing Hope Home organization so special is the staff members that give their all everyday to help better the lives of local families battling cancer. We’d love to have you get to know them a little better through this new blog series, appropriately titled “Meet A BHH Staff Member.”
Paul Isenberg, Founder and CEO
Paul left his full-time job this year to focus on building Bringing Hope Home to new heights. A graduate of West Chester University, Paul was a sales and organization leader with over 20 years of experience in Fortune 100 companies as well as small and middle market companies. His strength as an effective communicator in leading change has resulted in successfully building, restructuring, and transforming organizations. In 2013, Paul will use those talents on expanding the reach of BHH. With Paul on board full-time, there is no limit to how much help we can provide to the families battling cancer in the Philadelphia area.
Why did you decide to leave your full-time for-profit job to run Bringing Hope Home?
I have been CEO and co-Founder (with Tim Sherry, on the Board of Directors) since 2008 and it finally got to the point where I was feeling spread too thin on both ends. I couldn’t give 110% to my job and I couldn’t give 110% to the organization. I finally had to choose one thing to focus on.
Was that a hard decision for you?
My family really helped me work through it. I kept asking myself, ‘What is my passion? What do I want to do with my life?’ and I kept being drawn back to the nonproft. I was compelled to take the leap and wanted to commit to growing the organization. When you start to see how many people BHH has helped it was really an easy decision. I am a big believer in leaving the world a better place than you found it.
What do you love most about working at Bringing Hope Home?
Making an immediate local impact on the families battling cancer. I also love the team’s creativity and energy—we have one of the best nonprofit team’s out there!
What were your favorite BHH moments of 2012?
Hitting the 1,000th family market in August! And, of course, improving the everyday flow of the organization.
What do you love to do in your non-BHH time?
Be with my family—I have four wonderful kids, Chris, Gabby, Christa and Mick, three dogs, and beautiful wife Miriam. I also love to work out!
To see the entire story of how Bringing Hope Home came to be, check out this video.