Silicon Valley homeless nonprofit CEO is out

One of Silicon Valley’s most prolific homeless service providers is changing leadership, after reports of its mismanagement of a large South San Jose shelter led to a terminated contract.

Nonprofit LifeMoves announced CEO Aubrey Merriman is transitioning out of his role in an April 8 email sent to workers. Chief Operating Officer Nick Hodges is replacing Merriman as interim CEO while the board of directors searches for a replacement.

“On behalf of the board, I want to express our deep gratitude to Aubrey for his leadership and the meaningful impact he has had on LifeMoves and the communities we serve,” Board Chair Melissa Selcher wrote in the email. “Our priorities throughout this period remain clear: supporting you, maintaining operational stability, and continuing to deliver high-quality services to every client who relies on LifeMoves. And these will guide a thoughtful search process for our next CEO.”

Merriman was LifeMoves’ CEO for five years. Hodges joined LifeMoves as chief operating officer roughly six months ago. Before that, he served as chief operating officer for Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors for a decade.

Merriman, Hodges, Selcher and Board Vice Chair Tammy Crown did not respond to requests for comment.

A LifeMoves spokesperson told San José Spotlight Hodges isn’t available for comment due to the leadership transition.

Merriman’s exit follows San Jose terminating its $6 million contract with LifeMoves last month to run the Branham Lane temporary housing site, which serves about 200 people. The contract termination came after police arrested a worker for allegedly dealing drugs to residents at the shelter.  San José Spotlight previously reported on the dysfunction at the three-story modular housing site, where employees who spoke up about the alleged drug dealing were fired.

Former LifeMoves employees are skeptical that a change at the helm will fix ongoing structural issues.

“I think the agency as a whole, their structure, the way that they go about things, the way that they run, that needs to change,” a former employee, who asked not to be named for privacy concerns, told San José Spotlight. “You can’t just get rid of the CEO and keep the bottom feeders, the program directors that are causing this disturbance. Where’s the accountability on all levels?”

Employees who reported the alleged drug dealing at Branham Lane said they never personally contacted Merriman about the site’s issues, and it’s unclear what Merriman knew. They did contact other executives, including the head of human resources who is no longer working at LifeMoves, according to sources.

“A lot of reorganization is happening (at LifeMoves),” another former employee, who asked not to be named for privacy concerns, told San José Spotlight.

LifeMoves is one of the most prominent shelter operators in Santa Clara County, managing 10 shelter programs totaling 1,052 beds, according to a San José Spotlight analysis conducted last year. Other sites run by LifeMoves include Julian Street Inn in San Jose, a Mountain View Homekey site and New Haven Inn, a LGBTQ+ shelter in San Jose. It also operates one of two safe parking sites in San Jose.

The nonprofit organization, which had a $70 million operating budget in 2025, provided case management and supportive services to 6,317 people across Santa Clara and San Mateo counties last year, according to its impact report.

Contact Joyce Chu at [email protected] or @joyce_speaks on X.