Chris Sichel

At Prebys, Chris shares the title of Vice President of Programs with his colleague Emily Young. Chris leads the foundation’s grantmaking on youth and workforce, and shares responsibility with Emily for health-related initiatives, general program management and the foundation’s leadership development and nonprofit capacity building efforts.

Chris Sichel has been a dedicated leader in San Diego for over three decades. He joined Prebys after serving as President and CEO of the Santa Fe Foundation, and prior to that, Chris was President & CEO of Make-A-Wish San Diego for sixteen years and in 2018 served in a dual role as the President & CEO for the Greater Los Angeles chapter of Make-A-Wish, overseeing a financial turnaround, staff restructure and successful CEO search. Prior to his years at Make-A-Wish, Chris oversaw STAR/PAL, San Diego’s Police Athletic League for seven years, and established their “Center for Youth” in City Heights in Colina Park, as well as country-wide programming for underserved youth. Chris attended Harvard Business School’s “Strategic Perspective in Nonprofit Management” program and has been a two-time recipient of San Diego Business Journal’s “Most Admired CEO” as well as included on their list of Most Influential Business Leaders for several years.

Chris’s connection to the community includes a wide variety of volunteer activities, including serving on the Holiday Bowl Committee, BBB Board of Directors and recently as the 111^th President of the San Diego Rotary Club in 2020/2021, and as the San Diego Rotary Foundation President in 2021/2022.

Chris is a native San Diegan and a graduate of Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. He is an outdoor enthusiast with interests in backpacking, hiking and traveling as well as stand-up paddle boarding. Chris has walked several routes of the Camino de Santiago and one of his favorite quotes is “Create a life that you don’t need to escape from.”

Chris and his wife Coleen have three adult kids, who also share their love of travel and adventure.