The Greater Boston Food Bank
Cheryl Schondek has over 30 years of work experience in the food industry. Cheryl began their career in 1988 as the Director of Product Management, Merchandising, and Supply Chain at Shaw’s Supermarkets & Star Markets. In 2013, they joined The Greater Boston Food Bank as the Senior Vice President of Food Acquisition and Supply Chain, where they played a crucial role in ending hunger in eastern Massachusetts. Currently, Cheryl holds the position of Chief Operating Officer at The Greater Boston Food Bank.
Cheryl Schondek obtained a Master's degree in Business Administration and Management, General from the University of Vermont from 1984 to 1988. In 2011 and 2012, they attended the Massachusetts Institute of Technology for a Certificate Program in Executive Leadership Course in Supply Chain Management. Additionally, they have obtained several certifications from LinkedIn, including "Bystander Training: From Bystander to Upstander," "Communicating Across Cultures," "Confronting Bias: Thriving Across Our Differences," "Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging," "Rolling out a DIBs Training Program in Your Company," "Skills for Inclusive Conversations," and "Unconscious Bias," all of which they obtained in June 2020.
The Greater Boston Food Bank
The Greater Boston Food Bank (GBFB) is the largest hunger-relief organization in New England and among the largest food banks in the country. GBFB distributes over 60 million lbs of food annually, enough to provide healthy meals to more than 500,000 people who are food insecure in Eastern Massachusetts. GBFB acquires food through food industry product donations, food drives and financial contributions that enable us to purchase additional high nutrient quality food. We also benefit from the generosity of over 25,000 volunteers annually who help to sort and distribute donated food products. GBFB works to acquire, store, organize and distribute food through local food pantries, community meal programs, homeless and residential shelters, youth programs, senior centers, and day-care centers embedded in communities throughout the nine counties of eastern Massachusetts. GBFB’s food assistance locator provides an easy way for people in need to find help nearby. GBFB also distributes food directly to those in need through dedicated programs that serve particularly vulnerable groups, such as seniors and children. Since 2009, GBFB has operated out of a state-of-the-art, 117,000 square foot food distribution facility, the Yawkey Distribution Center, located in the Newmarket section of Boston. The Greater Boston Food Bank is a member of Feeding America, the nation's largest hunger-relief organization.