Dear Partner Agencies,
As the year comes to a close, I want to share several exciting staffing changes and updates for the New Year. We believe these changes will add more support to our partner agency network and strengthen our work together.
**Expanded Food and Nutrition Outreach Services for Partner Agencies
: Phil Carland, our Central
Zone Outreach Coordinator, has officially moved into a new role as a Community Outreach Coordinator. In this new role, Phil will be solely focused on FNS Outreach activities, including working with agencies across our service area to build capacity for FNS outreach to clients. We know that food stamp outreach is a significant way to reduce hunger and we are committed to offering this support to our agencies. I encourage you to consider taking advantage of this opportunity. Please reach out Phil at
pcarland@mannafoodbank.org
to learn more.
**Expanded Mobile Programs
: We have seen great success with the MANNA Express Program and the new MANNA Pop-up Markets for non-partner agencies. As many of you know, Malarie McGalliard has been a major player in the success of MANNA Express and we are grateful to have her strengths and skills at play in the creation of a new mobile pantry program in 2019 that will be modeled off our Pop-up Markets. We are very excited to have Malarie devote 100% of her time to these 3 new distribution methods. Malarie can be reached at
mmcgalliard@mannafoodbank.org
**
More Staffing Support for Agencies
: We are thrilled to add three new staff members to the Agency Relations team!
- Kristen Ollila is an AmeriCorps member who will work on matching agencies to free, donated Thermo Fisher frig and freezers. Kristen will also be working on our monthly newsletter. Feel free to reach out to her directly to get on the waiting list for a Thermo unit or share a story for our newsletter. Kristen has a background in community development and nonprofit work. She can be reached at kollilia@mannafoodbank.org
- Kaitlyn Smith is our new Agency Relations Coordinator and brings a wealth of nonprofit and food banking knowledge to the team. Kaitlyn has served as a Volunteer on the MANNA Helpline for a number of months, as well as the part-time Volunteer Center Associate. Kaitlyn has several years of nonprofit experience including work as a Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Outreach Coordinator for Feeding the Gulf Coast in Huntsville, Alabama, as well as a year of AmeriCorps VISTA services as a Funds Development Coordinator at North Alabama Agriplex, where she did fundraising, event coordination and taught Junior Master Gardner classes. We look forward to all she will bring to Agency Relations team! Kaitlyn can be reached at ksmith@mannafoodbank.org
- Leah Cormier has been selected as our Buncombe County Zone Coordinator and brings exceptional relationship building and leadership skills to the position. Leah has served as our Volunteer Center Supervisor for two years. Prior to her service at MANNA, Leah served as a case manager at a women’s shelter in Michigan and then became their Volunteer and Special Projects Manager. Leah will bring skill and passion to supporting and growing our Buncombe County partner agencies. Leah can be reached at lcormier@mannafoodbank.org
- Josh Hoerman (Eastern Zone Outreach Coordinator) and Amy Sims (Western Zone Outreach Coordinator) will continue to offer great support to their agencies. Josh supports Madison, McDowell, Henderson, Polk, Mitchell, Avery and Yancey county agencies. Amy supports Cherokee, Graham, Clay, Macon, Swain, Jackson, Haywood and Transylvania county agencies. Josh can be reached at jhoerman@mannafoodbank.org and Amy can be reached at asims@mannafoodbank.org
I wholeheartedly believe 2019 will be our best year yet and the Agency Relations team looks forward to working with you in the New Year. I welcome your feedback, thoughts, and questions; don’t hesitate to reach out. We are so very grateful for your service to families across Western North Carolina.
Happy Holidays to you and yours,
Amy