Food banks across the nation have increased since the COVID-19 pandemic started two years ago. And now, Elizabeth Omilami, the CEO of the largest Black-owned food bank in the southeast, is being recognized for her continuous efforts while serving the community.
Omilami took over the Atlanta-based food bank that her father started more than 50 years ago. The founder, Hosea Williams, was a civil rights activist who worked closely with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. during the civil rights movement.
Hosea Feed the Hungry & Homeless was a place people could count on in their time of need, StyleBluePrint reported.
When Wiliams passed away in 2000, Omilami was prepared to continue her father’s work, even if that meant postponing her acting career. The former actress has appeared in several movies and TV shows, including The Blind Side, Ray, and We Are Marshall. However, providing the Atlanta community with food and other emergency resources was more important to her than resuming her acting career.
With her husband Afemo Omilami by her side, Omilami has rebranded the organization by changing the name to Hosea Helps. The food bank is now a national organization that provides food, rental assistance, emergency shelter, employment assistance, and other services to people across the country and worldwide. Though Hosea Helps has faced a few setbacks since relocating its headquarters, the organization is now housed in a four-acre property in Southwest Atlanta. Hosea Helps serves over 50,000 people each year.
“We have an excellent brand in the Atlanta area. So, people know that if they give to Hosea Helps, it’s going to be used for the people in need,” Omilami said. “And that’s where your faith comes in. You just suck it in and keep walking day by day, trusting God, knowing that you’re doing God’s work.”
When asked what her biggest challenge since taking over the organization was, Omilami said raising the money to build and design another building after having to leave their original headquarters. Since then, the business owner has raised more than $2.8 million with a $2.5 million capital campaign.
“It is a family effort, and I’m very proud that the family was able to come together. And I’m proud of raising the number of staff in the case management area from seven to 21,” she said.
She added, “Fundraising is something that has to be in your blood. You have to be one of those people who enjoy the chase, someone who enjoys telling your story, enjoys the conquest. And that’s not really my personality. I’m a lot more artistic and laid back. I’m not that ‘chase it down and get that check’ kind of person, but I had to become that kind of person.”
Hosea Helps have offered resources to those affected during the pandemic in Georgia and other parts of the world. While they may have faced challenges along the way, Omilami often leans on her civil rights background and her strong faith in God to see her through. She and her staff continued working while serving communities in need.
“We are at our best when people have nowhere else to go. Hosea Helps is there nationwide, not just in Georgia, Omilami explained. “We were there during Katrina. We served more people in Atlanta from Katrina than any other organization. We were there for Flint, Michigan, sending 28 tractor-trailer loads full of water. We were there for storm disasters that happened in Mississippi, Alabama, and Tennessee.”
Omilami started gaining nonprofit partnerships with other businesses and organizations after facing a rough start at the beginning of the pandemic.
“Smaller nonprofits that had never come to us for food and supplies before started showing up at our warehouse,” Omilami recalled. “They would come and pick up pallets of food, and they were getting masks and hand sanitizers. And they would take that back to their community. It’s not about competition. It’s a disaster. People can’t get food. This was an emergency. So, our numbers tripled in terms of the number of people we were able to serve.”
Hosea Helps has acquired over 200 community partners since the pandemic started. She thanked her staff for working so hard to expand the organization into what it is now.
“The decision was made by the staff [to stay open during the pandemic]. I never pulled everybody together as CEO and said we’re going to stay open during this pandemic. They just kept coming in, and they just kept serving. We are blessed to have that kind of staff,” said Omilami.
While Omilami hopes to return to acting soon, she said she loves spending time with her family and grandchildren during her downtime. She offered one valuable piece of advice to those striving to make their dreams come true.
“I think that the best advice I was given was to just believe. That’s how I’ve lasted the past 21 years here at Hosea Helps. I did not know what I was doing. I didn’t have an MBA. I had a degree in theater, which has nothing to do with what I’m doing. My faith is what’s gotten me this far. It doesn’t mean I’m not fearful sometimes, but I go right back to believing we’re going to make it,” Omilami said.
