CIRCLEVILLE, OHIO (December 11, 2024) – Becky Hammond, executive director of Pickaway County Community Action Organization (PICCA), announced she will retire Jan. 31, 2025 from the nonprofit agency she’s lead since February 2020.
“It’s been an honor to lead this incredible organization for the past five years,” said Hammond, who has worked for PICCA in a variety of leadership roles for 21 years. “The work we do and the impact we have on the community is unmatched and continues to be needed more than ever.
“I have been blessed to lead PICCA, and I have confidence that our team will not lose a step in their work to lift up individuals and families of our community,” she said.
Beginning Feb. 1, 2025, PICCA Deputy Director/CFO Denise Pontius will serve as interim executive director until Hammond’s position is filled by the PICCA Board of Directors.
Board President Tonya Thompson informed PICCA staff and community partners about Hammond’s retirement in a letter distributed on Dec. 10. Hammond informed PICCA’s leadership team in person about the decision as the letter was distributed.
“It is with mixed emotions that I share the news of (Hammond’s) upcoming retirement,” Thompson stated in the letter. “We would like to take this opportunity to thank (Hammond) for everything that she has done for PICCA. Her commitment to the agency has been priceless, serving with dedication, expertise and professionalism. Her presence and leadership will be deeply missed.”
Hammond joined PICCA as emergency services director in 2003, after serving on the agency’s board of directors for three years. Prior to joining PICCA, she worked in human resources for Arrow Molded Plastics, Union Tools and Circle Plastics.
Hammond was deputy director of PICCA for seven years before being named by the board to the top job of the agency one month prior to the COVID pandemic in 2020. She was proceeded as PICCA executive director by Andrew Binegar, who is now executive director of Bridges Community Action Partnership in Delaware, Ohio.
Organized in 1965, PICCA provides opportunities to low-income individuals to improve their quality of life through a variety of programs and services.
Community Action Agencies were organized across the nation after congressional approval of the 1964 Economic Opportunity Act to fight poverty by empowering the poor as part of President Lyndon B. Johnson’s War of Poverty. Johnson’s proposal also created the Job Corps, Work Training and Work Study programs, legal services, and Head Start.
