By Kellie Glenn, Chief Development Officer, Hope Atlanta
People often ask how I found my way into nonprofit fundraising, and for me, the answer begins long before I ever entered this field. I am a social worker first. Early in my career, I worked with children who had experienced abuse and neglect. I loved those kids, but I also lived with a constant worry: What happens when they turn 18? Where do they go when the system ends? Who protects them when childhood services stop, but homelessness and trauma continue?
That question changed everything for me.
I made the decision to move into work with teens and young adults experiencing homelessness because I wanted to be part of the solution, not just a witness to the problem. That’s where I found nonprofit development: a place where I could combine advocacy, compassion, and resources into real change. I realized I could help build systems that prevent homelessness and support people in rebuilding their lives—with dignity.
I also realized something else: I could never raise funds for an organization unless I believed completely in its mission and saw its impact firsthand.
I believe in Hope Atlanta.
For the past two and a half years, I’ve had the privilege of serving as Chief Development Officer for one of the most trusted and impactful organizations in our city. Hope Atlanta, an organization that’s 125 years old, plays a critical role in preventing and ending homelessness by meeting people exactly where they are—at the airport, on MARTA platforms, in shelters and encampments, and within communities across Metro Atlanta. We serve children and families, seniors, veterans, individuals living with HIV/AIDS, and people facing multiple barriers to stability.
And yet, here is the truth: the need continues to rise, while funding remains limited. Government dollars matter, but they are highly restricted, and effective programs are being drastically cut. The most transformational work, the human-centered, flexible, individualized support that truly changes outcomes, happens because of individual donors.
I know this because I’ve witnessed it.
During my first week at Hope Atlanta, I met a woman named Cassandra. She worked at a hotel making beds for guests, and when her shift ended, she would leave to sleep on a park bench or in an alley, exhausted, scared, invisible.
I saw Cassandra walk into her own home for the first time.
Her smile, her tears, her relief, it is something I will never forget. When you witness that kind of transformation, your life is never the same.
This work doesn’t happen by accident. It happens because social workers have the unrestricted funding they need to do what is right, whether that means rent assistance, a hotel stay to keep someone safe, transportation to help them keep a job, or a deposit on an apartment that changes everything.
Unrestricted gifts make that possible.
Monthly gifts make that possible.
Gifts of any size make that possible.
At Hope Atlanta, donations help families remain safely housed, support women and children at our Women’s Community Kitchen, assist veterans in rebuilding their lives, and provide seniors with stability and care.
Hope Atlanta serves EVERYONE—because everyone deserves dignity and a pathway to self-sufficiency.
If you share that belief, if you want a stronger, safer, more compassionate Atlanta, I ask you to join us. Please consider making a gift today. One time. Monthly. Big or small. Every dollar makes a difference.
