Meet The Agency Authority!
By: Mikey J Smith
Twenty years ago, Celeste Delamore joined Family Giving Tree.
Since then, a lot has changed. Family Giving Tree has grown, our community has expanded, millions of gifts and backpacks have made their way to children and families across the Bay Area, and we’ve called more than one place home. But through it all, there’s been Celeste.
As our Lead Agency Coordinator, Celeste has spent two decades building and nurturing the relationships at the heart of our work. She knows our partner agencies, understands the communities they serve, and has become a trusted connection between Family Giving Tree and hundreds of organizations throughout the Bay Area.
Back in 2019, we gave her a fitting nickname: “The Agency Authority.” Seven years later, and 20 years into her FGT journey, we’d say the title still fits.
Over the years, Celeste has seen just about everything. As we celebrated reaching our 2 millionth recipient in 2021, she shared a memory she shared that goes all the way back to 2010, when a small partner agency reached out after approximately 500 holiday gifts had been stolen from a garage before they could be distributed. FGT was able to step in and replace them, ensuring hundreds of children still had something waiting for them that holiday.
For Celeste, moments like that are what the work is all about. And because there’s more to Celeste than being our resident Agency Authority, we’d be remiss not to mention another title she’s earned over the years: blue-ribbon jam maker.
In 2018, Celeste decided to test her wares and entered a selection of her homemade preserves in the Santa Cruz County Fair. And because apparently being an expert on our agency partners wasn’t enough, she came home with two blue ribbons.
It’s the kind of detail that feels perfectly Celeste: a little unexpected, full of personality, and further proof that whatever she puts her heart into, she tends to do pretty well. Because behind the blue ribbons, the jokes, and two decades’ worth of FGT stories is someone who cares deeply about the people we serve and the partners who make this work possible.
Twenty years at Family Giving Tree is an extraordinary milestone, and we are incredibly lucky that Celeste has chosen to spend those years growing alongside us.
Happy 20th anniversary, Celeste. Here’s to 20 years of relationships built, communities strengthened, countless laughs, and a few award-winning preserves along the way. 💙
