Chris Coats, Executive Director and Co-Founder

Chris Coats’ resume is quite ‘colorful’. Before working as an community development volunteer in numerous countries around the world, her employment included serving as Administrative Assistant to a Superintendent of Schools, Deputy Clerk of a District Court, Hunting Guide, Orthodontic Assistant, and Office Manager for a Private Investigator. 

Chris started her community service related work during high school, volunteering on a reconstruction project in Appalachia, and mission work in Mexico. For a number of years, she served as a youth group leader, Sunday school teacher, and summer camp counselor. During most of the 1980's, Chris was a foster parent for twenty children. 

In 2001, Chris started volunteering on a variety of international projects, in Fiji, Samoa, New Zealand, Kosovo, Estonia, Vietnam, and Cambodia. Through her experiences, she learned that a grassroots approach empowered the people she was helping, and a hands-on participatory practice was the most effective way to ensure success and sustainability of any project. These experiences led to Chris co-founding Trailblazer Foundation in 2004. Chris resides in Fort Collins, Colorado (USA).