Heed the Call

Emily Callahan, B.A. ’00, was named the new president and CEO of Feed the Children, a global anti-hunger organization that seeks to end childhood hunger.

For almost half a century, Feed the Children has worked to serve children and their families by offering food, household essentials, nutrition training, clean water programs, school supplies and more. In the last year, the organization served 12.8 million people, issued more than 80 million pounds of food and resources and distributed food and essentials valued at more than $371 million to children and families.

Callahan took the reins as CEO of Feed the Children last fall after two decades of non-profit leadership at well-known organizations like Susan G. Komen and ALSAC, the fundraising and awareness organization for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

Before Callahan became a visionary C-suite executive, she was a Baylor student unsure of her path, but confident in her call to Baylor. A small-town Oklahoman, she felt led to go somewhere she knew no one. A still, small voice pointed her to Baylor, where she eventually joined the Baylor Interdisciplinary Core. Her involvement as an undergraduate student included participation in Freshman Class Council, serving as president of her sorority, working as an intern in the Baylor Athletics Sports Information Office, leading tours for Undergraduate Admissions and joining marketing for the Heart of Texas Fair & Rodeo.

These experiences led her to Susan G. Komen, where she later became senior vice president of marketing. After this, she joined St. Jude, where she helped increase revenue and led St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital to become the “Most Trusted Brand in America” per Morning Consult. When the opportunity to lead Feed the Children came along after nearly 20 years at these organizations, she was ready to heed the call.

“I am pinching myself that I have the opportunity here to lead a global movement and make the world a better place,” Callahan said. “To have been able to do work that is connected to meeting a need, at Susan G. Komen and ALSAC and now here, is really the honor of a lifetime. To unite individuals and foundations to come together and fulfill needs for children and families with hunger — this is a problem I believe we can solve, and that truly inspires me.”