Meet Carson, Grant Manager for the food bank! Carson has worked here for just over a year. Read below to learn more about him.
What do you do at the food bank?
As the Grant Manager I manage the portfolio of grants that we have throughout the year. This includes spending grants down, ensuring that the work with operations goes smoothly, running reports and also prospecting for new grants. So overall, I manage the grants life cycle from initial prospecting stage all the way to the final report. I get to go to a lot of events as well and work on managing relationships.
How did you end up in this role?
My degree is in political science and philosophy, with a particular emphasis on social philosophy. In college I worked at The Salvation Army and did some policy work there. I’ve always been interested in poverty; it’s been a significant passion point of mine in my previous work and studies. Once I graduated and began looking for work, I checked out food policy related jobs since I had worked with that during college. I had done a lot of writing previously as well, which all fit in well with this job!
What’s your favorite part about your job?
My favorite part of my job is being able to track the spending of the grants and see the dollars making an impact on people’s lives.
Any standout memories?
Working on a really important grant for Gather 2 Grow, which is our summer meals program for youth. This grant allowed us to expand the program in a very significant way. Getting able to contribute to Gather 2 Grow, a program I really appreciate, by helping our programs and operations to kick it into a higher gear was really cool.
What motivates you to fight hunger?
A big part of family is oftentimes being around the dinner table. When people are unable to afford food to eat at their dinner table, it can kind of remove a social bond and doesn’t allow sharing meals to be something that brings people together. Because there are people unable to afford it, I think that’s significant, and it motivates me to help increase food access. You start your day with food, and if you can’t do that, it can drastically alter your trajectory.
What do you like to do in your free time?
I hang out with my cat, Fig, and watch a lot of NBA. Other than that I spend most of the rest of my time reading!
What is your favorite holiday meal?
The pumpkin roll that my mom makes for Thanksgiving!