Talking with Ashley Kanney, Founder of Feed the Kids Columbus

When it comes to corporate philanthropy, my passion lies in addressing the community's real needs, not just what we perceive them to be. Trust-based philanthropy is about putting faith in our nonprofit partners to lead the way. Today, I'm excited to talk with Ashley Kanney , the inspiring founder of Feed the Kids Columbus , who has dedicated her efforts to tackling childhood hunger.

Ashley started Feed the Kids Columbus to support children facing food insecurity. From beginning with just 97 children at one school, her organization now supports 30 schools and will reach about 9,000 children in the coming school year. Under her leadership, Feed the Kids Columbus has provided food and, more importantly, created a supportive environment where children feel safe to ask for help.

In our conversation, Ashley shared her journey, the challenges of scaling her operations, and the importance of genuine, committed partnerships with corporate funders. Her story is a powerful testament to trust-based philanthropy's impact on our communities. I hope her insights inspire you as much as they’ve inspired me.

Kelly: I'm going to kick things off by asking what was the driving force behind the creation of Feed the Kids Columbus, and how have you grown and adapted? You’ve grown significantly! How have you done that since you first envisioned this organization?

Taking a step back, I was working in the accounting field for a long time, and both my husband and I were always busy. I had three kids and found myself wishing they would go to bed earlier so I could work more. That didn't sit right with me. I wanted to be more present with my family and do something impactful for the community. So, I stepped back from my career and started volunteering wherever I could. And in this time, I just kept gravitating towards hunger, specifically with children. I feel like there are a lot of organizations out there to help with adults- and adults can seek these opportunities themselves- but a child doesn't necessarily always have the opportunity to seek those same resources because they're not old enough. They also don’t have someone advocating on their behalf a lot of the time.

That’s the drive behind Feed the Kids Columbus because I felt like my friends and family had no idea what was going on in their own backyard. I wanted to put that front and center so they could see, too, that food insecurity really knows no zip code. When you look deep enough, it’s in all of our communities.

From there, I kept thinking about the extended school breaks, and that's really how we began to make a difference. It's such a long amount of time for a child to be away from maybe their most consistent food source. I started asking around- what do we do as a community? Who's helping these children when they're away from potentially breakfast and lunch at school? So I thought, gosh, I wonder if I could rally the community together to provide a more substantial amount of food for these kids to take home before the breaks begin, giving them something to take the place of free and reduced breakfast and lunch from school.

Kelly: Thinking about your growth and impact, really, do you have a story or two that you could share about how you positively impact maybe some kiddos or schools?

The story that has always hit me the hardest is when I was talking with a school counselor in the Hilltop, she said we're so inclusive of all the students being able to get snacks whenever they need them in our program that children are no longer afraid to ask for help when they need food. The school was experiencing such an issue in the cafeteria with stealing because kids were so hungry, and they were trying to take extra food home with them in the evenings. Now, that counselor has seen a significant decrease in that happening because the kids feel trusting and comfortable enough to come to her and ask for help and for food. But it starts with something really little like that- a child will take a cookie or an apple, and they start to feel comfortable with stealing. And then they start doing it at a store, but a store manager might not be as forgiving as the school. It’s a cycle that just continues on. And so the counselor really felt like what we were doing was helping to break down that cycle.

At the school level, having these kids be comfortable asking for help because of our program was an impactful change, which I never considered occurring in a million years. I sit here thinking all the time, “this kid is hungry, we should feed them, that’s all.” But it is deeper than that. Our society casts a shameful look on hunger sometimes, and we’re working to get better at that. But the fact that these kids are feeling comfortable enough to ask for help is huge. And at the end of the day, it's so much more than just giving somebody a bag of pretzels. It’s educating the kids about community so that they can hopefully achieve their potential and positively contribute to society. If we can provide a granola bar to a child so they can listen to a math lesson, that’s a win.

Kelly: You brought up trust, which is huge. And that’s what it is. You're building trust and a relationship.

And we’re building reliability. That’s something I’ve heard from several different schools and our community centers, too. There will be times when a new program starts up, they partner a couple of times, and then they don’t come back. We work really hard to build trust with our new partners. But once you have that reciprocity, it’s amazing and awe-inspiring the work that can be done together.

Kelly: So, let’s dive into trust-based philanthropy—the idea of letting nonprofit partners decide how to use the funds they receive. It’s a growing movement that we’re trying to embrace. Have you had any partners take this approach? Has it been successful?

Definitely. Most of our bigger supporters are pretty good about trust-based giving. They don't put a bunch of rules on how we have to spend the money. And honestly, I think that's how it should be. If you're supporting a group and you trust them, you shouldn't need to micromanage every dollar. It's about believing in what we're doing and knowing we'll use the funds where they're needed most. For example, we don't have a lot of overhead, so most of the money goes straight to helping the kids. This trust lets us react quickly to needs as they change, which can really make a difference in our effectiveness.

We’ve been lucky because our partners are pretty hands-off and let us manage things on our end. It helps us stay flexible and innovative, which is crucial for adapting and growing. It's about having partners that not only provide funds but also genuinely support our vision and trust us to do what's best. That's been a game-changer for us.

Kelly: As you’re talking, it has me thinking about growing and scaling. Over spring break you provided something like 8,500 children with snacks. That's incredible! What partnerships and strategies have been crucial in helping you achieve this? And what challenges have you encountered along the way?

You know, we're just kind of stabbing in the dark, trying to figure out where to go. I take every opportunity that I have to talk with others about what we're doing. We also started this advisory council in addition to the board we have. Only one of our board members has experienced food insecurity, and I thought, “gosh, why aren’t we getting feedback and guidance from the people who see and experience this every single day?” The council consists of 35 teachers and administrators, helping us to think through some of the challenges that we might not understand. It’s allowed us to add some diversity to our organization in a lot of different ways.

Our space has definitely limited us in the past, and we are excited to grow into our next location. Sourcing and distributing the food is a challenge, but we’re lucky to work with many volunteers and local police departments who volunteer their time to help distribute the food to the kids.

Funding is a challenge, but I think that’s something all nonprofits would say. As we continue to grow, we’re learning new things like which companies align with our organizational goals and how we can grow our impacts together, which is important.

Kelly: Finding those corporations and philanthropists that align with the work that you’re doing is important. So tell me, what do you want from a corporate partner?

What we really want in a corporate partner is someone who's not just writing checks but is genuinely passionate about what we're doing and jumps right in to help. For example, Crawford Hoying has been amazing. They’ve given us space and regularly get involved, helping pack and distribute food and understanding the real difference they’re making. It’s about more than money—it's about being actively involved and caring about our mission and the kids we help.

We need partners who are in it for the long haul. It's crucial for us that they’re reliable and willing to stick with us as we grow. We have companies 'adopt a school.' They don't just fund us; they get involved with the deliveries, interact with the kids, and see the impact firsthand. It builds a stronger bond and makes our work so much more effective. So yeah, we're looking for commitment, not just contributions.

Kelly: I'm going to wrap up with one more question. Tell us what's next. What are your goals? How do you plan to make an impact?

We're super excited about this new space we’re moving into. It’s about 6000 square feet, which is going to make a huge difference in how we operate. It’ll let us move things around more easily and handle deliveries without needing a big crew all the time. This means we can free up more time to focus on what really matters—getting food to the kids. We’re also thinking about bringing in some of our community centers as partners throughout the year, not just during the summer months. This could help support kids all year round, which is awesome.

And we’re always looking for ways to fill in the gaps. We hear from the centers and the schools about needs that aren’t being met, and we try to step in. Like, if a kid isn’t eligible for certain programs because of timing or age restrictions, we can provide them with snack bags instead. We’re not just trying to do the same old thing; we’re aiming to work together with others in the community to make a bigger difference. It's all about making sure these kids have what they need to succeed, and that’s what we’re focused on as we move forward.