CONTACT
Christopher Gil
Director of Strategic Communications and Influence
Low Income Investment Fund
cgil@liifund.org
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
LIIF Welcomes Three New Board Directors
Board expertise will scale LIIF’s work strengthening communities nationwide
SAN FRANCISCO (July 10, 2025) — The Low Income Investment Fund (LIIF) has announced three new members will be joining its Board of Directors, bringing representation to 16 experts in their fields. The new directors are Bindiya Patel, a global-health expert; Jennifer LeSar, with over three decades of community-development experience; and Margaret Solle Salazar, who focuses on affordable housing and rejoins the LIIF Board after a stint with the Biden Administration.
“On behalf of the current Board, we are excited to welcome these three new Directors, who each bring enviable expertise in their respective fields and will help us continue to successfully drive forward LIIF’s mission,” said LIIF Board Chair Reymundo Ocañas, who serves as Executive Vice President, Director of Community Development Banking, Corporate Responsibility Group at PNC Bank.” Additionally, I want to thank Bill Kelly and David Fleming for their service for almost a decade; Bill guided LIIF’s work in affordable housing, and served as longtime Chair of our Lending Committee, and David brought deep experience with government contracting and nonprofit fiscal management, which helped scale LIIF’s early care and education practice.”
The three new LIIF Board members are:
Bindiya Patel
Executive Director, Leadership Tomorrow, Seattle, Washington
I am thrilled to take on this role in support of LIIF’s mission having learned so much about their impressive work — work that feels even more crucial in these times.
As Executive Director of Leadership Tomorrow, Bindiya Patel is responsible for ensuring that the organization cultivates, inspires, connects and engages an effective community of leaders in the Puget Sound region. Patel has over two decades of leadership experience at equity-focused nonprofit organizations where she has worked toward her lifelong mission to equip and create space for diverse leaders to make the world better for those furthest from power. Patel spent 19 years serving in several roles at PATH, a global health nonprofit based in Seattle. Most recently, she oversaw strategy and operations as Managing Director of PATH’s largest division.
Jennifer LeSar
CEO and Founder, LeSar Portfolio of Firms, San Diego, California
LIIF has long been a national leader in using capital as a force for community strengthening and opportunity. I’m honored to join a Board that shares my deep commitment to building inclusive, resilient communities — and to expanding access to affordable housing, quality early care and education, and community-serving facilities that help families thrive.
Jennifer LeSar combines a background of four decades in community development, real estate development and investment banking with a deep working knowledge of ecosystem change management and organizational strategy. She is the CEO and Founder of several systems change and sustainable communities-focused firms. Her work supports clients in achieving impactful and scalable solutions to today’s most vexing policy challenges including addressing our global housing affordability crisis and ending homelessness in the United States.
Margaret Solle Salazar
CEO, REACH CDC, Portland, Oregon
Our communities need committed partners to invest in housing, education and other infrastructure. I am proud to join the LIIF Board of Directors to help drive community development across the country.
Margaret Solle Salazar is CEO of REACH, which has a mission is to create opportunities for all people to thrive by developing and promoting equitable access to quality, affordable homes, supportive services and community. Since 1982, REACH has built innovative and affordable housing serving lower-income families and individuals in the Portland metropolitan region. Solle Salazar was formerly Executive Director of Oregon Housing and Community Services Department, where she served on the Cabinet of Gov. Kate Brown and oversaw the state’s efforts to build affordable housing, open the door to homeownership, prevent and end homelessness, and expand housing stability. Solle Salazar directs programs across the housing continuum, such as LIHTC, multifamily bonding and gap financing, homeless services, energy and weatherization assistance and mortgage lending.
All three new Directors commenced their Board roles on July 1, 2025.
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About the Low Income Investment Fund
Low Income Investment Fund (LIIF) is a national community development financial institution (CDFI), headquartered in San Francisco with offices in New York City, Atlanta, Los Angeles and Washington, D.C., that invests to help create communities of opportunity, equity and well-being. As a CDFI, LIIF supports projects that have high social value but lack access to traditional financial institutions. Since 1984, LIIF has deployed $3.8 billion to serve 2.6 million people in communities across the country. An S&P-rated organization, LIIF funds healthy communities by providing innovative capital solutions.
liifund.org
