The story below is from our May/June 2024 issue. For more stories like it, Subscribe Today. Thank you!
Photos By Aaron Spicer
The President and CEO of United Way of Roanoke Valley has a heart for service, earning her the title of “Best Community Builder of the Year.”
In this year’s Best of Roanoke poll, we asked our readers to tell us about the extraordinary individuals striving to make the region a better place to be. While there were so many amazing nominees, Abby Verdillo Hamilton, president and CEO of United Way of Roanoke Valley, came out on top as “Best Community Builder of the Year.”
It humbles Hamilton to have received this recognition, but she says community building is so much more than just one person’s efforts — it’s the cumulative work of many individuals and partners over time that makes the process so special. “We’re all adding to the foundation laid by others who came before us. I’m so grateful to be a part of continuing something so meaningful, and enduring!”
Seeing the transformative potential of collective action for herself is what prompted Hamilton to pursue a career centered on serving others. While living in the Philippines in the 1980s and ‘90s, she witnessed pivotal change occur as a result of the People Power Revolution and communities like her own uplift their neighbors after disasters like the eruption of Mount Pinatubo. During college and at the start of her career, everyday heroes like student activists, politicians, academics and faith leaders shared inspiring stories and words of wisdom, demonstrating firsthand how people passionate about the same cause can put their heads together to build something remarkable from the ground up, no matter how different their backgrounds might be. “That’s why I’ve dedicated my career to making a difference — to honor the legacy of these leaders and keep the spirit of positive change going.”
Hamilton assumed her present roles with United Way of Roanoke Valley in January 2020. Three months in, COVID-19 was declared a global pandemic, posing unprecedented challenges in the days and weeks that followed. But under her leadership, the organization adapted quickly, leveraging their strong foundation of cross-sector partnerships to better address urgent community demands before laying the groundwork for long-term rebuilding and recovery.
The insights gleaned then continue to steer United Way toward their goal of elevating 10,000 families to self-sufficiency by 2030. Strategies in key areas like housing, education and health care are continually refined so the team can appropriately assist people at each stage of their journey, but their approach for determining where to first focus time and resources is tried and true: best practice, analyzing regional and national data and, maybe the most critical component, considering feedback from those they serve. “It’s important to us and our partners that we get to know people and their circumstances, recognize their assets and strengths, include them in solving problems and leave them empowered in the process.”
While the complex nature of the organization’s work can often be discouraging due to limited resources and the slow pace at which change occurs when addressing system-level social problems, Hamilton says hearing the success stories of the families they’ve helped, seeing neighborhoods continue to improve and watching people come together to keep the momentum going is what makes even the hardest of days worth it.
In addition to rallying a diverse team of individuals with unique talents to achieve common goals, Hamilton is focused on supporting, paving the way and passing the knowledge she’s acquired on to the region’s next generation of leaders. Her goal is to foster an environment where people feel comfortable enough to have open discussions, experiment and learn from and reflect upon any mistakes made along the way. Another lesson she hopes to convey is the importance of balance. “Even though we might dive into our passions, like helping the community or a job we love, we often forget to make time for our loved ones and ourselves until it’s too late,” she says. “It took me 40 years and the loss of loved ones to realize that mistake.”
2024 marks United Way of Roanoke Valley’s 100th year of service. Hamilton extends her gratitude to all of the partners, volunteers, staff and donors who have backed its mission over the years. “Your support has been instrumental to our success.”
May this incredible changemaker’s unwavering commitment to community service, empowerment and advocacy spur us all into action for the greater good.
The story above is from our May/June 2024 issue. For more stories like it, Subscribe Today. Thank you!
