Money Ask from : executive Director AJ McCreary

Hello, 

I hope this letter finds you grounded and hopeful for the future. 

I wanted to reach out because we are working really hard to rally more recurring donors because that is our need right now! Equitable Giving Circle is in its seventh year of community care work and we are hoping that this is the year that we can double down in our work and to accomplish that goal I need to ask for help more often, loudly, and pointedly. 

Before I get in the weeds I do want to give gratitude for your curiosity, belief, and hope in this work. I genuinely am grateful for your investment in our organization. It is an honor to steward this body of work and I don’t take your contributions lightly. 

At this moment while the world feels like it is imploding, I am hopeful because I believe there is a future where everyone's needs are taken care of and I get to practice that work now. I am hopeful for the future because I believe if we can build a mess we can also build a better future. I am hopeful because I believe in the power of community and humanity even when things look bleak and I hope you will double down with us in this practice of hope and community building. 

We are one of the largest culturally specific food access programs in the country. We are still feeding folks. We are feeding 400 Black + Brown Families (about 2K individuals) in the Portland Metro every single week with food we still BUY from local BIPOC Farms. We have also grown our programming to include Community Events, Black Maternal Health Care, Ecological work and Placemaking. I am proud to say that we are still practicing holistic and disruptive community work that has a profound impact within our community. 

In addition to holding down feeding folks, we are working towards buying a building. In the last six years we have moved four times, and it is time to stabilize our program and put down roots. Our goal is to put our building in a community land trust. Getting into a building will allow us to increase our impact both in distributing tangible resources as well as in the ways we build community. We are implementing work at scale that is usually studied, piloted, and written about and genuinely not funded past a pilot. What you have already invested in is rare and special and we want to do more with your support! 

My ask for you is: can you double down with us? Can you make another investment into EGC today? Can you donate again and help us keep this work going and growing? Donations can be made online on our website or by sending a check. Your support is greatly appreciated. 

With joy, 

AJ McCreary, Executive Director