Richard Johnson joins Southeast Raleigh Promise as Director of Resource Development

We are pleased to welcome Richard Johnson to Southeast Raleigh Promise as our new Director of Resource Development. Richard, 45, brings more than two decades of experience in the nonprofit realm to work for us as we position our organization for new avenues of outreach and engagement of people and partnerships, resources, and support. In his new role, he is responsible for developing and implementing comprehensive strategies to increase our organization’s fundraising income and public awareness of services, programs, and activities.

“We are excited to welcome Richard to the team and to recruit someone who not only has a wealth of experience but also has a personal connection to Southeast Raleigh,” said Yvette Holmes, CEO.

Richard was raised in Southeast Raleigh’s Stratford Park with an older sister, Carla Johnson Olds, by their parents, the late Malcolm and Phyllis Johnson. His father studied at N.C. Central University and spent his career working at WakeMed. His mother, a graduate of St. Augustine’s University, worked in several capacities for Wake County. Richard attended Clarence Poe Elementary School and Carnage Middle School. He is a 1996 graduate of Enloe High School. Richard says one of his fondest childhood memories growing up in Southeast Raleigh is playing football and basketball for the City of Raleigh Parks and Recreation Department and the Boys & Girls Club. He also cherishes the nurturing of a stable community and the lifelong friendships it produced. Along with his sister, a resident of Frisco, TX, Richard still maintains their childhood home.

After graduating from N.C. Central University with a degree in Business Administration, Richard began a career with the Boy Scouts of America as a District Executive. His 15-year career as a scouting executive led to positions in Florence, SC, Newport News, VA, and Wilmington, DE. At each scouting office, Richard was responsible for steering annual fundraising, capital campaigns, and volunteer recruitment. Richard returned home to Raleigh in 2018 and continued working in fundraising capacities at his alma mater, NCCU, and, most recently, as the Director of Development for Community Music School. Richard and his wife of 16 years, Melodee, have two children, a son, Malcolm, 8, and a daughter, Lorraine, 3.

On visits home over the years, Richard watched Raleigh change and grow in ways other cities he’d lived in had not. He saw growth bring opportunities to Raleigh and the betterment of the entire city unfolding as a result, from jobs to amenities. “It made me appreciate Raleigh more, and I almost hate the secret got out,” Richard quips, noting an easily-navigated airport, school, and park system may become more like Charlotte and Atlanta. “Still, I’m all about the growth in Raleigh. We’re now the best metro area between New York and Miami.”

Richard believes his Southeast Raleigh roots inspire his role at Southeast Raleigh Promise, giving him a space to use his professional expertise to enhance the quality of life in the community he grew up in. “Being able to raise money and make important connections that educate and empower people feeds my passion,” he said. “Bringing that passion to the center of a community that shaped and molded me and so many others and continues to do so is among the most important work of my career. It’s personal.”