As we look back….
over our the last ten and a half years, we are proud of what we accomplished. Since May of 2010, Slow Money NC helped more than 200 people make 300+ low-interest loans and equity investments to finance 135 sustainable farms and food enterprises in North Carolina, totaling about $5 million in investments!
We are one of the most impactful Slow Money networks in the USA and beyond, and have shifted hundreds of hearts and minds from their paradigm of faraway investing to satisfying and critically important local community lending.
As the impact of our work has grown, so has our organization. Having started out under the fiscal sponsorship of the Abundance NC, Slow Money NC became its own 501(c)(3) non-profit organization in 2018. We will be forever grateful for the seven+ years we spent growing up under the brightly colored umbrella agency of our marvelous nonprofit fairy godmother.
Our staff has grown to three (albeit part-time) talented and tenacious women: Carol Hewitt, our Executive Director and Chief Officer of All Things Fun; Kathleen Conroy, our Chief Officer of Food and Farming; and Julie Amani, our Chief Officer of All Things Financial.
When we started Slow Money NC in 2010 we had little idea of what was ahead. We just knew small-scale sustainable farming mattered and needed our help. “Local food” was not a buzz phrase yet and there was no easy way to invest in your local farmer. We like to think that we have moved the needle. We’ve been raising awareness and moving capital, and teaching others how to do the same. We’ve created a lending vehicle that genuinely helps farmers and people who want to support them ~ and it’s working.
As we head into our second decade, we remain passionately committed to addressing the moral imperative of our time ~ to reverse climate change by creating a radical, systemic shift to a durable, restorative economy, starting with food. The wellness and joyful benefits of our success abound!
To hear about our news and events (we send emails very sparingly…) please follow this link!
Please keep shopping at your local coop, farmers markets, and CSAs. Let us know if you’d like to make a Slow Money loan to a deserving local farm/food enterprise, or donate so we can keep up our good work. We’d be happy to help.
Slowly and surely,
Carol, Kathleen and Julie
slowmoneync@gmail.com