Roulant Keeps on Rolling (Page 3)

Garrow had been involved with the charity from the beginning. She had been a roommate of co-founder Keith Fitzpatrick, and in 1996, she was hired to set up Project GO (Generation Outreach). This program, originally funded by the J.W. McConnell Family Foundation, saw students from Montreal universities and CEGEPs form clubs to organize volunteers and schedules to deliver meals prepared at Santropol Roulant. Although Project GO has been scaled back in recent years, McGill's chapter is still going strong, with dozens of new volunteers each year.

Like Reid, Garrow has an interest in international development and consults with governments and non-governmental organizations on international development projects in Africa and Asia. After spending a year in Ethiopia, Garrow returned to McGill to pursue her PhD in education and to Santropol Roulant as a member of their board. Soon she was heading up the hiring committee to find a new executive director.

	Volunteers outside Santropol Roulant prepare for deliveries. PHOTO: Owen Egan

"Vanessa and I sat down one day for coffee and to catch up. As she talked, I saw she was really committed to Montreal and doing some work in the community sector, and the light bulb went on," says Garrow.

She urged Reid to apply for the job. It was a challenging time for the organization, according to Garrow, because both of the founders had gone on to other projects that took them out of Montreal. Santropol Roulant was entering a new phase in its growth.

"Vanessa had the energy and the vision. The staff found her the most suited for the job; we really needed the right person with the right combination of skills and leadership to take the organization to the next stage," says Garrow.

One thing Reid says she took from her time in India and that she is trying to bring to Santropol Roulant is building community connections, to ensure that the organization remains relevant for years to come.

"The long-term durability or sustainability of an organization means you have to build relationships, you have to be really connected to the community you are working with, rather than just having big ideas and lots of money," she said.

It's easy to see why both Garrow and Torsney laud Reid for her friendliness. While we chat in a back room at Santropol Roulant, the hubbub in the main space continues to rise as volunteers arrive to collect the meals they will deliver all over the city. The phone is constantly ringing, and staff intermittently poke their heads in the door to ask Reid questions or just to say hi.

On the street outside, students on bicycles zip up and down Duluth St. with bright red meal delivery bags strapped to their backs. Reid sails through it all with an air of approachability and calm.

I ask her what she thinks will be next for her. She points out that she isn't an issue-oriented person -- she isn't motivated solely by volunteerism, or health care, or seniors' issues. Her interests lie in identifying areas where improvements can be introduced and the world made a little better.

"I feel like I adapt to different situations -- in any context, in any community, there are ways of pooling resources and of making something interesting and useful happen," she says. "No matter where I am, that's what I'll be doing."

Vanessa Reid would be happy to hear from alumni, especially former Santropol Roulant volunteers, at (514) 284-9335, at roulant@generation.net, or at www.santropolroulant.org.

Mark Reynolds is a Montreal writer.