The Book Industry Charitable Foundation is run by a seven-member team that offers years of combined experience in the bookselling and publishing worlds. Executive director Pam French and programs manager Kit Steinaway have been with Binc since the beginning. Within the past 12 months, Kera Yonker joined as development coordinator, and Judey Kalchik was appointed communication and project manager. The staff is rounded out by programs manager Kate Weiss, director of development Kathy Bartson, and office coordinator Mary Baker.
Binc is overseen by a board of 12, composed of booksellers, publishers, and other industry members. Matthew Gildea of Arcadia Publishing is currently board president and has been aware of the foundation’s efforts since his time at Borders, where he worked with French. He says he was “an easy sell” when French asked him to join.
Gildea notes that though bookselling offers many rewards, financial security is not one of them. He says he’s been impressed by the way Binc can, at least to some degree, “tamp down” booksellers’ financial anxieties. He’s also been encouraged by the way it’s been able to increase support for comics stores.
“The last two years have shown that Binc can pivot and can execute in roles it hadn’t dreamed of before, which is a testament to the team Pam French has built,” Gildea says.
