A little more about Gloria

In my current (and soon to be former) job at Foodshare in Connecticut, we regularly posted profiles of some of the great employees, Board members, and volunteers.  A while back, some of the team challenged me to answer some of the same questions that we ask them.  I thought this might be fun for my new work "family" to learn some of these things, too, so here's one adapted from one that ran on the Foodshare site.  And, at some point, I'll work on profiles of others involved with GardenShare!

Name: Gloria McAdam

Role at Foodshare:  Chief Executive Officer, though I've had various titles, for the last 30 years.

Role at GardenShare:  I will start full-time as the Executive Director at GardenShare on January 5, 2015

What changed the most in your time at Foodshare? The sheer numbers of people – so many more people needing help and so many more employees, volunteers, and donors providing help. When I started at Foodshare in August of 1984, I was the only employee. My day started by picking up a van (we only had a van then, no trucks) and driving to a local halfway house where I would pick up one to three men who were willing to volunteer for the day. Today, we have 62 employees, about 4,000 volunteers, and five trucks, none of which I am allowed to drive! 

What has stayed the same?The passion and dedication of the volunteers, the donors, and the employees. And the vision of creating a community where no one goes hungry.

What motivated you to make this change after 30 years in the same place?  Sometimes, things come together in the right way and the time is just right. I have dreamed of coming home to the North Country for years, but had put the dream on hold in order to avoid disrupting my family.  Now my kids are all grown up and dispersed, as is true with so many families these days.  And the reality at Foodshare is that the organization has gotten so big, that the CEO job really was not what I wanted to do anymore.  So, I look forward to coming home and to being in a small organization where I can be enmeshed in the mission and the program work every day!

If you could trade places with anyone for a week, who would it be? Why?

If I could also time travel, it would be a younger version of myself, so I could go back and fix some of the mistakes I’ve made!

If you could be, or do, anything else – what would it be? It would be something with horses. I grew up with horses and have never lost my love for them, so maybe owning a stable or maybe running a nonprofit that uses horses in therapeutic ways.  Here's a photo of me on Apache at an Arizona dude ranch vacation in February of 2013!

What is your favorite song? I love music even though, unlike the rest of the McAdam family, I have no talent at all! Songs often move me, and a big favorite is Garth Brooks rendition of “We Shall Be Free.”  Church is an important part of my life and my favorite hymns include “How Great Thou Art” and “Here I Am.”    I look forward to being back home and getting to hear "Matune Creek," a local band made up entirely of McAdam's!

Last read  I often have more than one book going at once.  I'm currently in the middle of a memoir called "Medicine Dogs," about how a woman learned from her dogs how to better care for herself.  (Hoping my two big dogs can teach me some similar lessons!)  And, of course, I still read a newspaper in the morning!

If you were a superhero, what would your power be? That’s easy, I’d end hunger, all around the world!

Have more questions you'd like me to answer? Feel free to e-mail them to me and you just might see them here at some point!

Gloria