Keyword/Tag: program director

Dallas Welcomes New Program Director Julie Macpherson

Posted on July 3, 2019 by -

We are excited to welcome Julie Macpherson, who will join the team in late July as the program director for Brighter Bites in Dallas. Julie joins Brighter Bites with a passion for food and food-related concerns after an extensive career within the public and nonprofit sectors focused on civil rights, environmental protection, and social service management.

As a high school exchange student, international studies major, and later resident of Washington D.C., Julie developed interests in world food traditions, cooking, and building relationships through food. Living in Portland cemented her love for farmers markets and connecting with growers and the land. After returning to Texas where she earned her undergraduate and master’s degrees, Julie became more involved with issues of hunger, food access for underserved populations, nutrition in food distribution programs, and fair trade food systems. The last included travel to the Dominican Republic to learn from organic cacao farmers within community-based, worker-owned cooperatives.

Julie is incredibly excited to bring her nonprofit experience and passion for healthy food to Brighter Bites, and the team looks forward to the opportunity to learn and grow under Julie’s leadership! Please join us in giving Julie a warm welcome!

 

Meet the Austin Team!

Posted on May 2, 2019 by -

In Austin, TX we have a small but committed team working together to create communities of health through fresh food.

Brighter Bites Austin staff: L to R Bethany, Jamela, Shelby, Victoria, Veronica, Maggie, Lori, Wendy, Rebeca

The team is led by Program Director Maggie Mangrum, MPH, who has been with Brighter Bites since January 2016. Maggie has led our growth across Austin and forged many new friendships and partnerships with organizations and produce providers across the city. We’re so lucky to have her leadership!

Program Manager Bethany Dawson (L) and Program Director Maggie Mangrum (R)

Bethany Dawson, MPH, has been with Brighter Bites since its first Austin season in the summer of 2015. Bethany moved into her current role a year and a half ago as program manager and additionally manages our internship and volunteer programs. We’re so grateful for all the hard work Bethany has contributed over the years to introduce our program to as many new helpers as we can!

We’re fortunate to have a team of three dedicated program coordinators who together help us create communities of health in all our schools.

Program Associate Veronica Cabrera, Program Coordinator Shelby Koebley, and Intern Victoria Neeranjan (L to R) show off some brightly colored produce!

Shelby Koebley is our most senior program coordinator and leads the Austin “Fun Food Experience”. Shelby joined Brighter Bites around the same time that we moved into our current work space with Farmhouse Delivery and as our kitchen manager has helped foster our great friendship with Farmhouse’s kitchen and warehouse staff.

Program Coordinator Rebeca Hernandez Gonzalez (center), posing with Program Associate Lori Hoadley (L) and Intern Wendy Snowden (R) during “Do the Hula Salsa” week.

Rebeca Hernandez Gonzalez, RDN, was first introduced to Brighter Bites as a dietetic intern in the summer of 2017 and joined the team full time as a program coordinator in the summer of 2018 after graduating with her RDN. Rebeca currently uses her expertise to serve as our nutrition education coordinator.

L to R: Program Coordinator Rebeca Hernandez Gonzalez, Intern Wendy Snowden, Program Coordinator Jamala Mavrakis, and Program Associate Lori Hoadley

Jamela Mavrakis joined Brighter Bites in December of 2018 as a program coordinator and has quickly become an invaluable member of the team by coordinating the Austin volunteer experience as well as leading the new schools that joined Brighter Bites this past spring!

We are incredibly grateful for our three amazing program associates who support our coordinators across the city.

Program Associate Lori Hoadley

Lori Hoadley joined the team with a background in customer service and great experience with conflict resolution that has had a wonderfully calming effect on the team and on our volunteers! Lori will join us this summer and next school year, and we couldn’t be more excited to have her on board for another season.

L to R: Veronica Cabrera, Shelby Koebley, Lori Hoadley

Veronica Cabrera was introduced to Brighter Bites in the summer of 2018 as a counselor at one of our summer sites. As a former classmate of Rebeca, Veronica connected with the program and joined our staff that fall. She makes such a positive impact on the volunteers and kids at our schools, and we’re so excited that she’ll be joining us again for programming in the 2019/2020 school year.

The Austin staff simulating a distribution. L to R: Shelby Koebley, Maggie Whittington, Rebeca Hernandez Gonzalez, Veronica Cabrera, & Mari Garza-Aguirre

Mari Garza-Aguirre was an amazing associate who worked with us last fall. Mari’s experience mentoring youth through the Gus Garcia Recreation Center, which coincidentally is one of our new program sites this summer, added a unique perspective to our team.

Our Austin team was also supported this past year by three fieldwork interns. We hope our interns enjoyed their experience as much as we enjoyed having them on our team!

Intern Wendy Snowden

Wendy Snowden, a biology and nutrition student at UT Austin, has been interning with Brighter Bites since June 2018 and has been absolutely wonderful in the field with our families. This spring, her research project was to gather recipe ideas from families to support the improvement of our recipe development and recipe bank.

Intern Victoria Neeranjan

Victoria Neeranjan joined our internship program last fall to complete her degree in nutrition from Texas State University. Even though she graduated in December, we’re so appreciative that Victoria stayed on with Brighter Bites throughout the spring as well! Victoria has worked to improve our collection of nutrition games that makes up a portion of our signature “Fun Food Experience”.

Intern Carolyn Haskins

Carolyn Haskins interned with Brighter Bites last fall to gain experience with a nutrition nonprofit during her last semester of graduate school at Texas State University, where she graduated with a Master of Science in Nutrition. Carolyn earned the trust of our students and parents alike and was a pro at encouraging students to try our produce-packed recipes each week!

Director of Marketing and Communications Stefanie Cousins

The Brighter Bites Austin team wouldn’t be complete without Director of Marketing and Communications Stefanie Cousins, MPH. While a member of the national team that headquarters in Houston, Stefanie offices with the programming team in Austin at the Farmhouse Delivery office space, often joined by her new pup Daisy. Stefanie is a one-woman show, overseeing all corporate communications, strategic marketing, and branding for Brighter Bites across the country. Fun fact: Stefanie launched the Brighter Bites program in Austin in the summer of 2015. The Austin team wouldn’t be complete without her!

Thanks again to all the wonderful ladies who’ve helped make Brighter Bites a success in Austin, TX!

Staff Spotlight: Melanie Button

Posted on January 29, 2019 by -

Meet Melanie!

In July of 2017, Melanie Button joined Brighter Bites as program director for Brighter Bites in NYC to help us launch our first program outside of Texas. We love having Melanie on our staff and wanted you to have the chance to get to know her better! We asked Melanie all about her experience working with Brighter Bites and her favorite things to do off the job. Check out Melanie’s responses below!

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What inspired you to join Brighter Bites?

I previously worked for our partner, City Harvest, delivering nutrition education programs including CATCH [Coordinated Approach to Child Health]. When Brighter Bites approached City Harvest about expanding to NYC, I was part of the team that explored whether it would be a viable partnership. Everyone on both sides was excited for the potential partnership, but it took a few months to figure out the logistics of running the program in NYC. During that time, I fell in love with Brighter Bites’ mission of creating communities of health through fresh food and its data driven approach to doing so. I was thrilled to be hired as program director and have the opportunity to oversee the launch of the first city outside of Texas.

What is your favorite part of your job?

My background is in education. I’m a certified New York State teacher and have spent most of my career working in schools in one way or another. I love empowering teachers at our Brighter Bites schools to be a vehicle for change for their students. Hearing from the teachers about the lessons they are doing in the classrooms with the fruits and veggies or how much they enjoy delivering our CATCH program really makes my day. And, of course, the impact on our families is what fills me up every day. My favorite is when a produce item really catches on with our families. This summer we received bok choy donations for a few weeks in a row. I had so many families tell me that it was brand new to them when we first distributed it but that their children had grown to love it to the point that they were now purchasing it on their own.

Melanie Button and City Harvest driver Ade McCoy

What is your favorite produce item?

I love avocados! I would eat avocado toast for every meal. What can I say, I’m a Brooklynite! Through our partnership with Avocados From Mexico we were able to provide avocados to all our Brighter Bites families last year which was super exciting for our families and staff.

Do you any favorite recipes to share (Brighter Bites or otherwise!)?

It took me 25+ years to learn to like cauliflower, but now I love it! Our Sneaky Mashed Potatoes are a great way to introduce this flavor to your kids.

Where did you grow up?

My father was career Army, so our family moved every 2-3 years. I was born in Germany and lived there as a young child as well as through middle school. My parents instilled a love of travel in my sister and me, and I feel so lucky to have seen so much of the world before I was even a teenager. I still have a serious travel bug!

What activities did you do as a child/teenager (sports, clubs, instruments, etc.)?

I was a huge bookworm. When we lived abroad, it was harder to get English books for kids. We visited London semi-regularly, and I would spend hours in bookstores trying to pick out which ones to bring back with us. I would have filled a whole suitcase if I could!

What would we most likely find you doing outside of work?

I’m an exercise junkie. If I go two or three days without working out I feel stressed and unsettled. I used to be a distance runner and have completed 5 marathons and 12+ half marathons, but lately I am finding a solid 30 minutes a day is just right.

What is your favorite thing about living in New York?

Living in New York usually means agreeing to live in a smaller space. I actually value this a lot. It forces you to get out and explore the city. Instead of backyards, we have so many beautiful parks including my favorite, Fort Greene Park in Brooklyn.

Do you have any local attraction or restaurant recommendations?

Right now, all our program locations are in the borough of Queens which is the most ethnically diverse urban area in the world! My staff and I are always eager to explore new flavors and cuisines on our lunch breaks. A staff favorite is Arepas Grill in Astoria which serves Venezuelan specialties. This year, my goal is to explore the many Tibetan and Nepalese restaurants in Jackson Heights and find the best momos (traditional dumplings), which is a hotly contested title.

Any family or friends you want to introduce us to?

My husband Tommy is the true chef in our family! He grew up in Texas, and his family is originally from Louisiana, so he brings southern flavors into our home. He made jambalaya for me on our second date and it was pretty much a done deal. We are both overly obsessed with our dog Homer who we rescued from a shelter 3 years ago. He really rules our roost, but we would not have it any other way.

Where is/has been your favorite place to visit/travel to?

My husband and I love road trips! When you are driving through new places, it feels like the travel is just as exciting as the destination. Some of our favorite itineraries have been Utah and the western national parks, the Dalmatian coast exploring Croatia, Bosnia, and Montenegro, and our most recent trip through Germany, Austria, and Slovenia. I hated learning to drive manual as a teenager but my parents were right – it is a skill I now highly value!

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Thanks for everything you do Melanie!

Staff Spotlight: Emily Kelley

Posted on June 14, 2018 by -

Meet Emily!

Emily Kelley is Program Director for Brighter Bites in Houston, TX. Emily joined Brighter Bites in its early days, working with the program as early as 2013 as an Americorps VISTA before becoming a permanent member and leader of the team. Emily was inspired by the idea of building a program from the ground up that allowed her to share her passion for healthy eating with others. Emily loves that her job requires constant problem solving and leading others towards a common goal.

Emily Kelley (center), enjoys Zumba with Brighter Bites staff during a team meeting

Emily grew up in South Carolina, where she was involved in volleyball and theater. Now that she lives in Houston, she loves going to Miller Outdoor Theatre from time to time to catch a show or music act.

When she’s not on the job, you might find Emily enjoying the outdoors with her dog, an English Pointer named Lyle, climbing, camping, or visiting a national park. She also loves meeting up with friends for happy hour and exploring Houston’s diverse food scene. You can also often find Emily spending time in her kitchen, where she might be making her favorite Brighter Bites recipe, our Put it on Anything Pesto.

Thank you Emily for your stellar leadership!