Margi Preston is the new executive director of Facets of Fairfax. Photo by Abigail Constantino/The Connection
Margi Preston started as Executive Director of Facets of Fairfax officially on Nov. 17. But she attended its fall fundraising event, A Taste of Fall, on Nov. 15 and witnessed the dedication of Facets staff and supporters in helping individuals and families experiencing poverty in Fairfax County.
Preston was attracted to Facets of Fairfax because of the diversity of the work it is doing, which range from emergency and immediate help to long-term efforts to “try to get people to a better place,” she said.
Facets launched its Hypothermia Prevention and Response program on Nov. 23 and it will last for 16 weeks this winter, concurrent with other programs that provide short- and long-term help to people in need.
Preston hopes to bring a “different perspective with a lot of experience” to Facets. With her 28-year career working on poverty issues and experience with county, state, and federal governments, she said that she wants to “enhance the already amazing services” of Facets. For now, she is busy learning more about her job, the staff, and the programs.
Preston was executive director of Any Baby Can in Austin, Texas, prior to joining Facets. She joined Any Baby Can as a program officer in 2012 and assumed the executive directorship in February 2013.
Her interest in social work started in college. While doing an internship in Appalachia, she saw the effects of rural poverty and lack of resources. After graduating with a bachelor’s in social work in 1986, she worked at Children’s Protective Services in San Antonio. Her next career was working in shelters, which led to an interest in their administration. She helped start Open Arms Domestic Violence Shelter in Ohio.
Her next move was as shelter director of the Women’s Shelter of East Texas, where she worked on bringing telemedicine to clients, who would normally have no access to psychiatrists and other types of medical help.
Preston and her husband, Dan, live in Leesburg, with one of their four daughters.
Founded in 1988, Facets of Fairfax operates in all of Fairfax County. It provides comprehensive services in three key areas, homelessness prevention, housing services, and education and community development. It employs 21 staff and has 3,000 volunteers. For more information visit http://facetscares.org/.