Moos named Children's Village CEO

COEUR d'ALENE — Children’s Village on Thursday named Vanessa Moos as its chief executive officer. She had been filling the post on an interim basis since May.

"My hope for these kids is that they know how much they are loved and that happiness is theirs to choose," Moos said. "Children's Village is committed to their future and I pray that Coeur d'Alene and our surrounding area continue to lift us up in our work."

The move confirms that Moos will continue as leader of the facility dedicated to providing a safe haven and restoring hope for children who have been abused, neglected, or are in a severe family crisis.

Children’s Village is the only nonprofit children’s residential care facility in Kootenai County and houses the only Crisis Nursery in North Idaho. The two residential homes are open 24 hours, 365 days per year for children in need of help from both private community families as well as the Department of Health and Welfare.

“Vanessa is a visionary; she sees something in us and we are beyond grateful to have her as our leader,” said Amie Anderson, president of Children’s Village Foundation Board of Directors.

Moos received her undergraduate degree from John Carroll University in communications and obtained her master’s in public administration from California State University with a specialty in nonprofit and public management. She worked at the American Cancer Society in local, regional and national roles for over 12 years.

Children’s Village hired Moos in 2019 as director of charitable giving.

Since coming on board, Moos has stabilized and grown the community-based fundraising in Coeur d’Alene, a press release said.

"Under her leadership, Children’s Village has revised their external messaging and helped the local area to understand further the vision and efforts of the organization," the release said.

Moos said she made the decision decades ago to live her life in service.

"As a mom, I feel deeply impacted by our work at Children's Village; families need a village to support them and if it's not a biological family or friend network, they should know that their community is here to be their village," she said.