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Shoestring
Profile: Katherine Crowley
 Roots
are an important part of any community organization. Katherine
Crowley's roots with Operation Shoestring run deep.
Not
only did Katherine's two kids both participate in Shoestring's
programs, but she herself was a part of the community medical
program at Wells United Methodist Church, a precursor of
Operation Shoestring.
"At
the time, there was no medical doctor to go to in this neighborhood,"
Katherine remembers. "Nancy Gilbert [Shoestring's first
executive director] ran the program at Wells, and my mother
took my brother and me to get our shots there."
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Katherine
graduated from Lanier High School and eventually became a part
of the Shoestring team, first as a volunteer and then as a caseworker
in our Christian Children's Fund program. When her children (now
young adults in their mid-twenties) became old enough, she jumped
at the chance to include them in the Shoestring program.
"They
loved Shoestring," she says. "They were always excited about coming
here."
Today,
Katherine Crowley functions as Shoestring's eyes and ears in the
community. "She's been connected to this neighborhood since childhood,
and that's so important to us," says Shoestring executive director
Robert Langford. "Her program expertise, combined with the real
legitimacy she carries with those we serve, make her so important
to us on so many levels. Plus, she's great fun to work with."
Katherine
returns the compliment to Shoestring. "I love what I do," she
says. It's so rewarding to see the smiles on children's faces,
and to know I can help some of these families improve their situation."
If
I could pick another career: "I don't think there's anything
I'd rather do. I love my job!"
Career
I wouldn't want: "I wouldn't want to work in a grocery store
or a factory. I did that before, for seven years, and there's
nothing about it that I like."
Role
model: "My mom, because she was a single mother and raised
all of us. We weren't on the street, and we all now have jobs
and our own home. She's still around. She's 73 and just retired
from St. Dominic's, where she was the oldest employee to retire
from there."
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