Food Shelf and Facilities Manager
Paul Harcey’s path to PROP was not direct — he had worked many jobs, much of which involved the nonprofit sector. “Working with a greater good has always felt right to me,” Paul shared. Paul had also worked jobs related to camping and the outdoors, and directly before PROP, Paul had actually been working at an escape room. When he was looking for new opportunities regarding a full-time position, he discovered PROP and was hired in the fall of 2019.
As Food Shelf and Facilities Manager, Paul’s role ranges in tasks. He manages several aspects of the Food Mart, including working with volunteers to facilitate daily operations, scheduling drivers to pick up food from local grocery stores, sorting food donations, and managing daily inventory. He also makes orders from PROP’s partners Second Harvest and The Food Group and heads other projects throughout each year.
Because of Paul’s commitment to PROP, he’s seen a newfound consistency to the operations of the food shelf as a whole. He’s also connected with the volunteers, emphasizing the importance of their work to PROP. “A large part of my job is to build and maintain relationships with the volunteers which is the best part of working at PROP,” Paul said. “The volunteers have always made PROP work, and have made it a great place to work.”
These consistent operations are further realized through PROP’s collaborative nature, as Paul works with much of the staff to manage the food shelf. “Having good communication with each other and keeping the procedures consistent keeps things running smoothly and helps volunteers work with different crews with the least amount of bugs in the system,” Paul explained.
Because Paul’s role is focused on the Food Mart, his greatest hope for the future is for PROP to expand its capacity and create an even greater impact regarding food insecurity in the community. “More storage will help us maintain top quality food as well as allow us to take larger donations which will help even out the highs and lows in our stock,” Paul said. “All of these things would help PROP become an even better food shelf.”