Michael Kuhr is the new director of finance at the I.M. Sulzbacher Center for the Homeless. He started April 2.
WHAT DOES HIS
JOB ENTAIL?
“I’m still learning, but mostly I’m responsible for the accounting of the entire organization, including the maintenance of accounting records, budgeting, grants and the financial operations for the center. I’ll probably also be involved in human relations, insurance matters and purchasing. I’m going to have to get involved in their capital campaign with maintaining records and tracking donations and grant money. When construction starts, I will be involved in how that goes. Linda [Lanier, executive director] is heading that up, but she’ll need help.”
HOW DOES HE LIKE IT
SO FAR?
“The people are good to work with, plus, I know I’m making a difference because of what the organization does for the community and the homeless. I’ve been here before to help serve meals, but I’m looking forward to really getting involved in all aspects of the center and exploring more about what the center is doing.”
THE LEARNING CURVE?
“When I got here, there was not a finance department. The guy before me was called into the reserves and the CFO left. My biggest challenge is learning on my own. There are vast differences between the nonprofit and the corporate world so I need to learn things about their funding, grants and availability of cash. Those challenges make life interesting.”
IS THE HOMELESS POPULATION GROWING?
“With these economic times, we’re seeing more of it. We’ve been well over capacity for months. The center has initiated programs to help with that but a lot goes unidentified because people ignore it. Raising community awareness about it helps. The real problem is making people aware that there is help to get them back on their feet, find a place to live and find work.”
PREVIOUS EMPLOYMENT?
Kuhr was employed by Unisource for 22 years until they were bought by Georgia Pacific and he fell victim to massive layoffs. His first job was as a credit manager for a family-run restaurant supply company.
HOMETOWN
Dayton, Ohio.
EDUCATION
Kuhr studied business at the University of Toledo and Ohio State University, where he met his wife Deborah. “I was thinking about going into law when I first went to college but, at the time, corporate finance was more attractive to me.”
MY THREE SONS
Mandarin is home to Kuhr, his wife and their three sons: Josh, Jonathan and Zak. “My youngest plays baseball and my middle son is a junior at Douglas Anderson [School for the Arts]; he’s a jazz pianist.”
HIS OTHER INTERESTS?
Walks around the neighborhood, John Grisham novels, musicals and impromptu road trips are happy distractions for him. “I love to take off on adventures and go somewhere.”
WHAT BROUGHT HIM TO JACKSONVILLE?
“After working for 15 years as the regional controller for a division of Unisource in Columbus, Ohio, Unisource planned to consolidate their financial processes and, consequently, eliminate positions. They suggested I apply for a job in Jacksonville as a finance director, so we moved here in 1995.”
HIS PET PEEVE?
“When people don’t have a sense of urgency when they should, especially during crunch times.”
HIS HERO?
“My rabbi, Michael Matuson. He’s a wonderful man and an inspiration.”
HOW IS HE INVOLVED WITH HIS CHURCH?
“I am a B’nai tutor and Lay Cantor.” He is also part of the choir at his temple, Ahavath Chesed (Hebrew for loving kindness).
— by Monica Chamness