BEVERLY — The YMCA of the North Shore recently announced that it has hired an executive director of mental wellness — a newly created role — and appointed a new vice president of charitable giving.
Ranjeev Benjamin, a former chemical engineer, will take on the mental wellness role focused on addressing the growing need to combat mental health challenges and support mental wellness programming, training, and services across the 25 communities the Y serves. Rebecca Imperiali, as vice president of charitable giving, will lead her team to strategically expand the Y’s philanthropic efforts by connecting community members to the Y’s mission and its commitment to providing access to all, regardless of their ability to pay.
Benjamin has more than 15 years of experience in community mental health and wellness as a psychotherapist and clinical supervisor. Before joining the Y, he was the program director at the Riverside Community Care, Behavioral Health Outpatient Center in Somerville. He is a licensed independent clinical social worker with a master’s from Boston University.
He will take the lead on ONEDOOR, the YMCA of the North Shore’s path to mental wellness, and its most recent initiative to meet the evolving needs across its member communities. Benjamin will manage the development of programs and services as the Y continues to integrate mental wellness into the fabric of its organization, and increases mental health support for staff, members, program participants, and the community.
ONEDOOR also includes a consultative partnership with McLean Hospital in Belmont, a leader in psychiatric care, research, and education, and the largest psychiatric teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School. Benjamin will oversee this partnership.
He will also help expand Youth Mental Health First Aid certifications for staff working with children and adolescents. Youth Mental Health First Aid will give Y staff who work with children and adolescents the tools to identify, understand, and respond to signs of mental health and substance use challenges as well as how best to connect their families to the appropriate community resources.
Most of Imperiali’s career was at Beth Israel Lahey Health, first as the director of major gifts and advancing to vice president for philanthropy. She has extensive experience and as a certified fundraising executive (CFRE), she meets the highest standards of ethical best-practice fundraising and commitment to philanthropy.
Imperiali will focus on deepening the connection between the Y’s vital services and donors who have and can support those needs. Through sharing stories and exploring interests, she will seek to inspire increased generosity to advance the Y’s mission. She has more than 15 years of experience as a leader in the nonprofit financial development field, with a track record of building new donor relationships and growing strong philanthropy programs.
“We are thrilled to have these two incredibly talented and passionate leaders join our team,” President and CEO Chris Lovasco said. “Ranjeev and Rebecca bring so much experience and knowledge as well as a fresh perspective to our Y and I am confident they both will be instrumental in advancing our Y’s mission in 2024 and beyond.”