Raffish to lead DCF communications and marketing

The Delaware Community Foundation has named Robbie Tarpley Raffish as its vice president of communications and marketing.

As a member of the leadership team, Raffish will work directly with Stuart Comstock-Gay, DCF president and CEO. She will oversee external and internal communications for the organization, including brand strategy, development and implementation of marketing plans, public relations, crisis communications, advertising and design.

Raffish, an integrated marketing industry veteran, joins the foundation from Asapr Ink, a Salisbury, Md.-based firm she founded in 1996. Her experience includes project and consulting work with the Community Foundation of the Eastern Shore, philanthropy – most notably as a member of the communications launch team for the National Museum of Jewish American History – and expertise in the areas of commercial real estate, healthcare, education, food and beverage, automotive and consumer goods.

“Raffish’s career makes her uniquely suited to working at the DCF,” said Comstock-Gay. “Her ability to assemble and manage teams, and merge them with external resources for successful programs was exactly what we were seeking. Most importantly, she has a love of philanthropy that is visible throughout her journey.”

“I am thrilled to join the DCF and be a member of an organization that has a clear focus on the betterment of and for the people of Delaware,” said Raffish. “I had been seeking a way to deploy what I have learned in my varied career in a new and impactful way, a role where I could collaborate with smart, creative and interesting people who share a similar desire to make a difference. I feel very at home at the DCF already.”

Raffish earned a degree in communications and political science from the University of Delaware and has served on a number of nonprofit boards. She has published nearly 200 articles and is currently working on a novel of historical fiction. A parent of two adult children, she resides in Georgetown with her husband Clay Tarpley.

The mission of the Delaware Community Foundation is to improve the First State through community-based philanthropy. For more information, go to delcf.org or call 302-571-8004.