“I’m a walking billboard for all of the great things Federation does,” said FedRadioDetroit’s most recent guest, Carolyn Bellinson. But, as she explains, it took a mission to Israel at the age of 38 for it all to click. Once it did though, there was no stopping her.
As Federation’s Annual Campaign co-chair; restauranteur and co-founder of Peas and Carrots Hospitality; co-founder of Brilliant Detroit and past president of Hebrew Free Loan, Carolyn wears many hats on any given day. Her commitment to taking care of others and striving for personal and professional success come from life lessons she learned at an early age.
Growing up in a single-parent household and watching her mother work to take care of three children, with some much-needed support from Federation and its partner organizations, Carolyn experienced first-hand the importance of helping others.
Together with her husband Jim, Carolyn co-founded Brilliant Detroit, a non-profit that works with families to address issues of early childhood literacy in Detroit neighborhoods.
“I’ve been working on our elevator pitch for Brilliant Detroit, because we do so much, it’s hard to describe it in a 10-second clip.” True for this incredible organization — and for the life that Carolyn has built.
You can hear more about Brilliant Detroit, what it was like working at Stage Deli as a high school student when it first opened, how her mother’s gift to Hebrew Free Loan started her on a path to becoming the organization’s president and much more about Carolyn Bellison’s journey to being a true community leader in the latest episode of FedRadioDetroit.
