Project Bread Welcomes Carolyn Volpe Cunningham to Board of Directors

BELMONT, Mass. – Project Bread, the leading statewide food security organization, is pleased to welcome Carolyn Volpe Cunningham to the nonprofit’s Board of Directors, a group of professionals who provide governance, expertise, and strategic support to the nonprofit. On Sunday, May 5, the Belmont resident will step up for Project Bread’s 56th annual Walk for Hunger. The one-day celebration aims to raise more than $1.3 million to support the leading statewide food security organization’s approach to permanently solve hunger in Massachusetts.

Cunningham brings more than 30 years of business experience as a strategy management consultant and an executive advisor. Early in her career, she worked with state-owned enterprises in Poland, helping them adjust to the newly opened markets, as the Iron Curtain fell. This experience helped her see firsthand the role of a successful economy in helping families thrive. She returned to Boston to join the premiere global consulting firm Monitor Group (now part of Deloitte) and earn her MBA from Harvard Business School. For the past 15 years, she has been working as an executive advisor to C-suite leaders in both the for profit and nonprofit sectors, helping them become agents of change. From her own childhood in a family of seven, where meals were happy times but her parents had to work to stretch food, to her experience as a mother of two, Cunningham understands the essential role regular, nutritious food plays in the health and well-being of children. As longtime financial contributors to Project Bread, Cunningham and her husband have been impressed with the ability of the nonprofit to bring together individuals and organizations across the business, political and nonprofit sectors to create long term solutions to eradicate hunger.

“I couldn’t be more excited to support Project Bread. It has the trifecta of an effective organization: a bold, achievable mission, an effective strategy, and strong leadership,” says Cunningham. “Food is a core need. No family in Massachusetts should suffer from food insecurity. I look forward to bringing my expertise to Project Bread to strengthen board governance and further our mission, and I can’t wait to walk alongside friends, family and fellow board members to end hunger.”

Meeting four times a year, the Project Bread Board of Directors holds governance and fiduciary responsibility for the organization and serves as the nonprofit’s greatest ambassadors. While providing advice and strategic direction, taken from their individual areas of significant expertise, the group also strengthens Project Bread’s position by connecting leadership to their personal and professional networks. The Board of Directors is also philanthropically engaged, raising more than $350,000 annually in support of the organization’s strategic initiatives.

Cunningham returns to Boston Common as a new board member to participate in the Walk for Hunger this May. She will be among over 3,500 in-person and virtual participants to walk the accessible three-mile loop around the Boston Common or in their own neighborhoods. Beginning in 1969, as the first pledge walk in the nation, the one-day event is set for Sunday, May 5 at 9 a.m. on the Boston Common. It will feature family-friendly activities, programming and games, as the nonprofit invites people with mobility devices, strollers, young children and other needs to all participate in the mission to end hunger in Massachusetts. Project Bread works year-round across policy initiatives, programs, and hunger prevention measures to ensure food access for all children and families across the Commonwealth.

“I’m proud to welcome Carolyn to our Board of Directors as she has long been an advisor, activist, and advocate on our behalf. She understands the impact of strong leadership and now brings her own wealth of experience to Project Bread to amplify our organization’s vitality and sustainability,” says Erin McAleer, Project Bread’s CEO. “We’ve made incredible strides forward as a state, but hunger is still a pervasive problem, with one in five households with children currently facing food insecurity. Participating in Project Bread’s Walk for Hunger is one way we can all do something real to make sure our neighbors can access and afford the food they need.”

Money raised through the Walk for Hunger is critical to Project Bread’s statewide work for systemic change through policy, prevention, and partnerships to ensure people of all ages have reliable access to healthy food. In keeping with the community spirit of the event, the Walk also provides a platform for organizations to fund the vital work they do for food security locally. In 2019, Project Bread launched a joint fundraising program, The Commonwealth, to uplift the work of like-minded organizations. In 2023, 34 nonprofits raised more than $160,000 to support their own programs.

To register as a participant for Project Bread’s Walk for Hunger, or to support a walker or team with a donation, visit projectbread.org/walk. There is no registration fee or fundraising minimum to participate, although a $250 minimum goal is suggested. Participants who raise $500 or more are recognized as Heart & Sole walkers and receive access to personalized fundraising support, exclusive event gear and invitations to events.

People experiencing food insecurity should call Project Bread’s FoodSource Hotline (1-800-645-8333), which provides confidential, free assistance getting connected to a variety of food resources in 180 languages and for the hearing impaired. Counselors can pre-screen families and help them to apply for SNAP. Learn more at www.projectbread.org/get-help.

About Project Bread

Project Bread is the leading statewide food security organization in Massachusetts. Beginning in 1969 with the first Walk for Hunger, the nonprofit focuses on driving systemic change to ensure people of all ages have reliable access to healthy food. Project Bread works collaboratively across sectors to create innovative solutions to end hunger and improve lives across the Commonwealth. For more information, visit: www.projectbread.org.

###