Nancy Walters considers herself an “aging activist”. Hailing originally from Ramsey, NJ, Nancy came to the Lehigh Valley to attend college and later married Easton native, Tom Walters. They have raised 3 children and now enjoy 7 grandchildren.
Nancy’s serial careers include public school art teacher, at home parenting, non-profit work, human resources and yoga teacher. Over the years Nancy embraced extensive volunteer work in the Easton community including being elected to the Easton Area School Board of Directors in the 1990’s.
Through her church involvement at Arndt’s Lutheran Church in Forks Township, Nancy became more involved with food insufficiency and local hunger issues, and started several hunger-related programs locally, such as the Peanut Butter Project, Backpack Pals, Make-it, Take-it KITCHEN and in 2014 the Easton Hunger Coalition. Nancy has been the driving force behind the Hunger Coalition for 4 years, which has brought together many of our member agencies in the city of Easton along with other organizations and passionate community members to make a difference in the lives of Easton residents.
Nancy has also worked with the Lehigh Valley Food Policy Council to create and launch a gleaning initiative, mobilizing an army of volunteers to pick food from farmer’s fields and deliver that fresh nutritious produce to food pantries and Second Harvest. This effort produced over 13,000 pounds of fresh foods in 2017!
Nancy’s passion for the work she does to benefit her community and her boundless energy bring together all of those who have had the privilege to work with her on these initiatives.
About the Award
The Sharon’s Pantry Humanitarian Award is presented to an individual who has demonstrated the same unwavering commitment to improving the health of our community as Sharon Gausling, the award’s namesake.
Sharon was a humble and caring pediatrician who treated all of her patients as though they were her own children. She had a special gift to be able to bring peace where there was suffering or despair. Sharon saved many lives and helped countless children heal with her loving care. Sharon’s work was widespread, and she touched the lives of many families who were struggling. It was Sharon’s mission to ensure that all families were able to find the help and resources that they needed.
In honor of Sharon’s quiet, yet uncompromising resolve that every child be healthy, the Gausling family has made a gift to Second Harvest to ensure that all families in our community will have access to healthy food for generations to come. In recognition, Second Harvest’s facility has been named, “Sharon’s Pantry.”