Introducing Melody Porter, New Director of Economic Mobility
As a part of their commitment to the growth of the Richmond region, the Community Foundation has established a new position: the Director of Economic Mobility. According to Chief Impact Officer Sarah Bedard Holland, this was a direct response to community needs.
“We realized that to continue supporting the financial and social well-being of our residents, we needed to be laser focused on economic mobility. So we created this role and began our search for an experienced, thoughtful, and tenacious individual able to work with the community, build trust, and forge lasting partnerships.”
Enter Melody Porter, a community engagement professional, minister, advocate, volunteer, author, and proud Richmonder.
And while Porter may be the first person to serve in this role, she is no stranger to service.
In fact, right after graduating from college in Georgia, Porter relocated to Philadelphia, where she volunteered to help workers find jobs as their neighborhood transitioned away from factory labor.
As a part of their commitment to the growth of the Richmond region, the Community Foundation has established a new position: the Director of Economic Mobility. According to Chief Impact Officer Sarah Bedard Holland, this was a direct response to community needs.
“I saw what moved things forward, and what held things up,” she said. “I learned from mentors who had been doing this work for years, and I learned a lot about community, power, and influence.”
But what Porter brought with her to her volunteer role was just as important: a commitment to working with, not doing for.
"I had the goal,” she said, “of listening and learning; of gaining new perspectives while being of service where I could.”
Soon after, Porter and several other volunteers moved to Johannesburg, South Africa to work with preschool children. Arriving right after the end of Apartheid and understanding the unique position she was in, Porter knew she needed to approach this assignment with both humility and respect.
“You can’t go into these experiences assuming you have answers to the struggles people are facing, because you just don’t,” Porter said. “I understood that the people I was working with had so much to teach me, and I was just honored to provide some helpful labor.”
During her time in South Africa, Porter witnessed a country grappling with its past, rebuilding its present, and planning for its future.
“I assisted at one of the first integrated preschools in the city,” Porter said of her experience. “We had kids getting dropped off at school in BMWs and other kids who had slept on the street the night before.”
She was also inspired by the faith leaders advocating on the front lines.
“I was volunteering in the basement of this church with the preschool,” she shared, “and then I could go upstairs to the sanctuary to hear Truth and Reconciliation Commission hearings. It was an incredible experience.”
Once she returned home to Georgia, she enrolled in theology school and began interning at a church where she had previously volunteered. Here, she facilitated a Sunday School class for a large community of men, learning alongside those experiencing housing insecurity and financial instability.
After graduating, Porter was eager to put her faith, experience, and education to work. So she returned to Philadelphia as an associate minister at a Methodist church, where she staffed justice-focused church committees and served as the director of the after school program.
“Every day was about asking myself what does my faith demand that I do for others?” She recalled. “And asking what our communal faith means for how we participate in the world.”
After 3 years, Porter embarked on her next chapter: higher education. She began working in a community engagement role at Emory University before moving to Virginia to serve at William & Mary, where she would go on to serve as the director of Civic & Community Engagement. For 17 years, she built community connections, identified ways to collaborate, and promoted volunteerism.
Once she moved to Richmond in 2009, she quickly fell in love with the city and opted to commute to Williamsburg each day for work.
Now, as the Community Foundation’s Director of Economic Mobility, Porter sees this as the culmination of her years working to bridge divides.
“Coming into this role that's focused on economic mobility is like pulling little threads from these different parts of my life,” she said.
Indeed, Porter arrives with a wealth of experience that she believes can build on the Community Foundation’s progress.
“We can and do play the role of catalyst,” she said. “Of Leaders and listeners. And we can focus that on creating the kind of economy and a community that our region deserves while respecting and empowering those who have been doing this work for decades.”
As with any new role, the position continues to take shape. And during this challenging moment in our history which has left many feeling lonely and alienated, it can be easy to feel overwhelmed.
But Porter believes in the region, and as she applies her own unique approach and builds upon the Community Foundation’s progress, her vision for the future is as clear as it is bold.
“Economic mobility is not about stepping on others to get to the top,” Porter asserted. “It’s about creating ways, structures and opportunities for people to feel seen. Where they have a sense of dignity. Where they can do meaningful work that provides the income they need to succeed and thrive. Where they are surrounded by neighbors who care about them. It all comes down to building trust with each other.”
