Food Rescue US – DC

Hi, I’m Kate Urbank, and I’m the Food Rescue US – DC Site Director. I was a volunteer for the original Food Rescue US site in my home state of Connecticut before I moved to DC. When I learned that there was no app-based, volunteer-driven food runner program in DC, I decided to change that. Since then, with the help of hundreds of volunteers, Food Rescue US – DC has kept nearly nine million pounds of healthy excess food out of landfills, redirecting it to the food insecure. Before joining the Food Rescue US movement, I began my career at WETA-TV after graduating from Georgetown University and later served as senior staff on numerous state and local political campaigns in Connecticut. Making community connections and being a food waste warrior on behalf of Food Rescue US is now the challenge and highlight of my career.

Hi! I’m Colleen Gillespie, and I’m the Food Rescue US – DC Site Coordinator. Originally from New Jersey, I moved to DC to attend Catholic University of America. While there, I started working in restaurants and fell in love with the food and beverage world. I spent the next 15 years in the hospitality industry, cultivating connections and creating experiences for everyone who walked through the door. Through restaurants, I was able to combine my passion for sharing food with my desire to increase access to nutritious food for those in need in our community and that led me to Food Rescue US – DC. To be able to bring my experience from one area of the food world into another to help prevent food waste and food insecurity is an absolute dream!