Emmeline Weinert ('10)

Food Program Manager at Hope Clinic

After receiving her liberal arts degree in Dance and Political Science from Loyola Marymount University in LA, Emmeline travelled to Soweto, South Africa for a service abroad program that focused on helping those suffering from HIV. She came back from that experience knowing she wanted a career where she had the opportunity to help people. 

Indeed, she helped RSSAA briefly in the early childhood program, and then worked in marketing and communications at Thrivant Financial, a Christian fraternal organization that provided members with financial education and grant opportunities.

She cultivated her digital communication skills there and found her passion for social services. 
After brief stints at Kiwanis and the Shelter Association, she found a good culture fit at Hope Clinic in Ypsilanti. As at many non-profits, Emmeline wears many hats. She started in marketing, but since the pandemic, helps to grow the Food Assistance program, where she works with community organizations and volunteers to match them with their passions to serve. As the Board President of Interfaith Council for Peace and Justice, she helps build resilient community structures. 

She credits her Waldorf education with the willingness to dive into new tasks, even if she has very little experience with it. At RSSAA one studies many subjects, even if you aren’t good at them. Through this she learned to not be afraid of failure. Her ability to write and summarize complex ideas and break them down was a weekly practice in her Main Lesson books and has served her well in social media communications. Even more so, the cultivation of compassion and recognizing the human soul in each person, prepared her to engage with people of many backgrounds and cultures in her work.