Leadership

Carmen Cumberland, President and CEO

Community Harvest President and CEO Carmen Cumberland is a Fort Wayne native and graduate of South Side High School. Carmen is also a Veteran, having served four years in the United States Navy, and holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Accounting from Western Governors University.

Carmen has been in the non-profit sector since 1998. After spending two years as the accounting assistant at Catholic Charities, she joined Community Harvest Food Bank in 2001 where she served as the Director of Finance and Human Resource Manager. In that capacity, she managed the development and implementation of the agency budget while working closely with senior staff and the board of directors. Carmen also managed Human Resource functions that included employee recruitment & selection, benefits & compensation, training & development, and employee relations for Community Harvest. In December 2014, Carmen was asked to serve as Interim Executive Director by CHFB’s Board of Directors. She maintained her roles in finance and human resources while leading all aspects of the daily operations of the Food Bank as Interim Executive Director. In January 2016, Carmen officially became Executive President of Community Harvest as part of the new executive leadership team with John Wolf, CHFB CEO. In July 2021, Carmen accepted the role of President and CEO following John Wolf’s retirement.

In 2017 Carmen and her husband, Chad, ventured into farming with the purchase of Shared Harvest in Markle, Indiana: a female, Veteran-owned farm. From 2018-2023, they grew a variety of vegetables such as green beans, sweet corn, edamame, peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers, okra, and broccoli. Nearly 1 million lbs. of this produce was distributed from Shared Harvest to Community Harvest Food bank, and then distributed to families in need throughout Northeast Indiana. Recognizing the growing demand for protein, in 2024, Carmen and Chad shifted their focus to livestock, adding cows, chickens, turkeys, and pigs to their farm. Their goal is to begin donating much-needed protein to the food bank starting in 2025. In addition to her dedication to Community Harvest, Carmen serves on several boards and committees. She is a board member and treasurer of Feeding Indiana’s Hungry (FIsH), NIPSCO’s East Region Community Advisory Panel (CAPS), a member of Alliance for Human Services (AHS), and she is a member and secretary of the Women Business Leadership Council.