Hear Here Local Focus - Leah Waldron and Laura Potter

CATSKILLS REGION — Hear Here Podcast sat down with Leah Waldron and Laura Potter to talk about community outreach, recognizing areas of need, building connections, the nonprofit world, grant writing vs fundraising and the specific areas they have chosen to focus on.

The two meeting through work at a nonprofit has set the tone for their relationship and individual  outreach efforts. 

Leah’s current graduate studies of nutrition and dietetics have led her to invest time in community food outreach and pinpointing food deserts in both rural and urban areas. Working with an existing nonprofit, Farm-2-Family Wheels Program, Leah has had the opportunity to see the effects of their work in real time by making food deliveries in areas around the capital district. Laura’s focus as a restorative yoga teacher for women's health and raising awareness of some of the stigma and difficulties of access in rural communities. Her personal project, the Period Party Product Drive, was hosted by Rockland Cider Works in Gilboa and gathered donated female hygiene products for distribution to local outreach facilities and directly to people in need. 

Both Leah’s and Laura’s projects show how important funding and donations are to the success of community outreach. Both women have gone through the ins and outs of grant writing and opened up about the process and limits of grants which reinforced how essential private donations are! Very grateful for individuals like these two and their continued work in the future. Search Hear Here Leah Waldron & Laura Potter on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.