COEUR d’ALENE — Marcee Hartzell was candid about whether being the new CEO of Tesh, Inc. was a longtime goal, perhaps the fulfillment of a lifelong dream.

Neither, really.

“I don’t think being the CEO of Tesh was ever on my radar,” she said Thursday during an interview in her office.

Earlier this year, she knew Tesh — which works with people with disabilities to help them reach their full potential — was seeking board members. She thought it would be a great way to give back to the community.

But when the opportunity arose to be the CEO, she took it, because she knows personally the difference this nonprofit makes for those it helps and their loved ones.

“What better way to give back to my family and the community that we’ve been a part of,” she said.

There are family ties.

An uncle with developmental disabilities, and a nephew with Down syndrome both received training and assistance from Tesh, and were better — and happier — for it.

“Tesh became part of our lives,” Hartzell said.

The Post Falls High School graduate stepped in after Frances Huffman retired recently after nearly seven years.

Hartzell is already loving it.

“The people here are amazing,” she said.

She oversees an organization with a budget of close to $2 million, that serves about 425 clients a year, and has a full- and part-time staff of about 65.

Tesh’s mission is to provide “child development, independent living, and employment choices and training to people with disabilities of all ages seeking greater independence, self-sufficiency, and participation in our community.”

It has served over 20,000 children and adults with disabilities since 1976.

Hartzell believes Tesh plays a key role in the community and she wants to expand upon it. She hopes to have more clients and create more opportunities for them to develop and learn new skills.

She hopes to add partners and increase resources and services.

“We need to grow. We need to grow how we serve, who we serve, the communities we serve,” she said.

“For me, a big push along with growing our programs is awareness,” she added.

Hartzell graduated from North Idaho College and has a degree in communication and marketing from the University of Washington. She has worked for private companies and for school districts in Washington state “providing services to the underrepresented population in some way, shape or form, always.“

She also worked with the Kootenai Health Foundation.

She called her staff at Tesh “hard-core, dedicated to clients, to what we do here.” They work long days to be sure clients have what they need. They laugh with them and cry with them and put smiles on their faces."

That's what attracted Hartzell to Tesh.

“I wanted to work for an organization that had that heart, and I know we have that here," she said.

Tesh has its annual dinner and benefit auction fundraiser coming up on Sept. 10 at the Best Western Plus Coeur d’Alene Inn.

The theme is “Where dreams come True."

Hartzell believes Tesh is one of the community’s best-kept secrets. She’s found many people don’t know of Tesh or what it does.

She's happy to fill them in.

"What we provide to our community is an asset that you can’t find in many places," she said. "To have an organization that’s been around this long and knows the community the way we do, I think that’s a huge gem."