Jilly Stephens

About Jilly Stephens

City Harvest is New York’s first and largest food rescue organization, helping to feed millions of New Yorkers who struggle to put meals on their tables. During our 40 years serving New Yorkers in need, we have rescued more than one billion pounds of fresh, nutritious food and delivered it—free of charge—to hundreds of food pantries, soup kitchens, community partners, and our own Mobile Markets® across the five boroughs. This year, we will rescue and distribute more than 75 million pounds of nutritious food to our neighbors in need. City Harvest works alongside our community partners to boost community capacity, expand nutrition education, and strengthen local food systems. Since our founding in 1982, City Harvest has always been there to feed our city—one day, one meal, one New Yorker at a time. To learn more, please visit cityharvest.org. Since becoming Chief Executive Officer in 2006, Jilly has overseen City Harvest’s efforts to meet the rising demand for emergency food while putting in place long-term initiatives to address the health and nutrition needs of low-income communities in New York City. Under Jilly’s leadership, City Harvest established a Food Rescue Facility in Long Island City, Queens, a square-foot warehouse that enabled the organization to double the amount of food rescued and delivered each year from 30 million in 2012 to 63 million pounds in 2019. Jilly joined City Harvest as Senior Director of Program Development in 2004, where she led the development and expansion of the organization’s community programs, including Mobile Markets, nutrition education, and retail partnerships, which now collectively reach over New Yorkers across the five boroughs each year. Prior to joining City Harvest, Jilly served as the Vice President of Program Operations at ORBIS International, an $80+ million nonprofit organization dedicated to the elimination of avoidable blindness through hands-on surgical training and education.

Experience

1. Chief Executive Officer

   City Harvest

   Apr 2006 — Present

   Raised over $500 million in total revenue and in-kind donations.• Rescued over 1 billion pounds of food that meets agency needs for variety and quality.• Responded to Hurricane Sandy at 100% operational capacity just 72 hours after the hurricane hit.• Raised over $100m in a Capital Campaign for City Harvest\'s new square foot campus to bring all staff under one roof for the first time in the organizations history. • Opened nine mobile markets covering food deserts• Led City Harvest’s Share Lunch Fight Hunger campaigns for 20 years raising over $20m• Developed the Healthy Neighborhoods Initiative by strengthening a portfolio of programs and partnerships designed to improve access to and demand for healthy food in five neighborhoods.• Developed the Senior Team and City Harvest Staff (Harvesters) with a focus on diversity and inclusion, performance management, and fostering excellence throughout the organization.