“Today is my birthday and I didn’t think I was going to have a birthday cake.”
Hearing these words at a food distribution changed Ciara’s view of her work forever.
A Westchester neighbor at a food distribution was the person behind this sentence. Eyeing a cake provided by Feeding Westchester’s Retail Recovery program, she was hesitant to take it home—until Ciara encouraged her to celebrate the moment.
Ciara reflects, “It never dawned on me that somebody wouldn’t be able to celebrate a birthday with a simple cake. We gave her a bit of joy for the day.”
And joy, for Ciara, is at the center of everything she does. “The impact we’re having is not only helping people feed their families nutritious meals—but also providing joy.”
Ciara keeps this in mind while representing Westchester neighbors experiencing hunger.
In her role as Manager of Government Relations and Advocacy, Ciara bridges the gap between the community and policymakers—raising neighbors’ voices by telling their stories and advocating for legislation that meets their real needs.
Her role has three components: advocacy storytelling, government relations, and policy work.
But if you ask her to give a job description, she puts it simply: “Elevating the voices of those we serve. Talking to our communities, our partner agencies, our neighbors, and learning more about the experiences of our community.”
That deep listening drives her work every day. Ciara takes what she hears from community members and uses it to advocate for policy change.
And in doing so, Ciara sees the firsthand impact of using neighbor stories to fight for political change. She shares, “I see that click from our government officials, where now they understand… or get why the funding or the legislation is so important. I’m able to then tie it back to the people… who actually need our help.”
So, why advocacy work?
Ciara explains what draws her to it, saying, “I get to talk about our mission every single day—our work, the impact we have in the community. And I know when I log off, I’ve done something to help make an impact.”
Her role allows her to fight for those who may not have the platform to fight for themselves. And in doing so, Ciara isn’t just changing policy—she’s changing lives.
Most importantly, she’s making sure that neighbors’ voices are at the center of the conversation.
Ciara puts it plainly: “Oftentimes people feel like their voice isn’t going to be heard or isn’t going to be taken seriously. So, in talking to our neighbors, we need to let them know that they’re the experts in this field—we are not the experts.”
Thanks to Ciara, the experts in the fight against hunger—those with lived experience—are heard, respected, and never spoken over.
