Project Bread Hires Jessie Cox as Asst. Director of Individual Giving

WATERTOWN, Mass. – For nearly two decades, Jessie Cox, 43, of Watertown, worked in the private sector to bring brands to life through events and charitable partner activations. She got her first taste in helping connect residents to food resources, in planning, promoting, and executing a bike-a-thon with proceeds going to support The Vermont Food Bank and a Thanksgiving celebration for the Greater Boston Food Bank. This work sparked a passion and desire in Cox to utilize her relationship management, fundraising, and event skills to continue helping to feed neighbors in need. As the new Assistant Director of Individual Giving for Project Bread, the leading statewide anti-hunger organization in Massachusetts, she is doing just that.

On a daily basis, Cox manages a team to cultivate new and existing relationships with individual donors, celebrating their contribution to Project Bread’s impact of connecting community members with nutrition resources and advancing policy solutions to end hunger. Many of these folks have participated in Project Bread’s annual Walk for Hunger in the past. Now, she is helping to re-engage them to participate in this year’s reimagined event.

“I love the energy and camaraderie that comes from fundraising events, like the Walk for Hunger, which brings community members of all backgrounds together for a united cause,” says Cox, who plans to hit the pavement for the cause in her own neighborhood to raise $2,500 in advance of working the event. “As a working mother of two, I see the impact of free school meals within my own neighborhood. Project Bread is tackling hunger from so many angles, from connecting residents to local nutrition resources to advocating for legislation to make free school meals permanent for all – it’s really mind blowing. I am so proud to work for an organization that is making such a tremendous impact in the lives of individuals, youth, and families across the Commonwealth.”

Set for Sunday, May 7, registration is open for Project Bread’s 55th annual Walk for Hunger. Back in person for the first time since 2019, more than 3,000 Massachusetts residents will gather on the Boston Common and hundreds of others will participate remotely for the one-day fundraising event to raise more than $1 million. New this year, there will be several family-friendly activations along the Boston Common three-mile route to raise awareness for food insecurity, nutrition resources available and other ways to get involved through the nonprofit to help neighbors in need.

Money raised through the Walk is funding Project Bread’s urgent mission to ensure kids have reliable access to food, to directly help individuals and families, and to advocate at the state and federal levels for expedited and efficient relief for those in need. Walk funds are also supporting community organizations that are helping people access food locally and ensuring communities have the resources necessary to respond to the hunger crisis now and over the long road to recovery ahead.

“This year’s event represents a culmination of our fundraising season and a celebration of community efforts over the last three years of the pandemic to fundraise and walk to solve hunger,” says Elizabeth Greenhalgh, Chief Advance Officer at Project Bread. “We’ve been inspired by the continued commitment of our supporters, and with Jessie as part of our fundraising team, we’re better able to connect and amplify the energy of our Massachusetts community when it comes to fighting hunger.”

To register for Project Bread’s Walk for Hunger, or to support a walker or team, visit projectbread.org/walk or call (617) 723-5000. 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.

About Project Bread

Project Bread, the leading statewide anti-hunger nonprofit, connects people and communities in Massachusetts to reliable sources of food, while advocating for policies that make food more accessible—so that no one goes hungry. For more information, visit: www.projectbread.org.

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