thought leaders | The DC Velocity Q & A When ALAN President Jock Menzies died suddenly in 2013, Kathy Fulton took over the interim reins. Now, the group, and a new legacy, is hers. John Lennon wrote "life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans." Kathy Fulton, head of operations for the American Logistics Aid Network (ALAN), which matches logistics resources with the disaster-response needs of aid groups, may not have been making plans on Aug. 17, 2013. However, life intervened in a sudden and tragic way. Fulton was told that, the night before, her boss, John T. (Jock) Menzies, ALAN’s charismatic co-founder, had fallen 200 feet from a malfunctioning cable car near his Annapolis, Md., home. Menzies, 69 and in otherwise fine health, died of his injuries the next day. Amid her shock and grief, Fulton knew that, for the interim at least, she had been elevated to become the face of ALAN. She was committed to maintaining the core beliefs and principles that Menzies developed when ALAN was formed in 2005 after Hurricane Katrina. A change of direction was not on the radar screen. Fulton wasn’t angling to be named permanent executive director, but this past September, ALAN’s board appointed her to the post. She starts her first full year in the top job with formidable volunteer support. In September, Joel Anderson, the retired president and CEO of the International Warehouse Logistics Association (IWLA), joined ALAN to coordinate fundraising activities. At the same time, Felicia Alexander, a long-time business and nonprofit executive, came on board to expand ALAN’s efforts within California. Fulton spoke recently with Executive Editor Mark B. Solomon about her role, the state of global logistics humanitarian efforts, and her commitment to continue on the trail that Menzies blazed. Q: When […]