Stella Delp

Chief of Staff at The Farmlink Project

“Cheese Cave” in Springfield, Missouri Photo Credit: Brown Political Review
From left to right: Luis Yepiz, Ben Collier, and Sophia Adelle on Capitol Hill for The United Fresh Conference.
Storm surge floods the parking lot to McElroy’s Harbor House restaurant in Mississippi on August 26 as Hurricane Ida approached. Hannah Ruhoff
Photo credit: SunHerald.com
Stella Delp
Chief of Staff at The Farmlink Project
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Stella Delp’s first role at The Farmlink Project was the “lettuce lady,” calling farms to inquire about surplus greens.

After being sent home from her sophomore spring at Stanford because of the COVID-19 pandemic to complete the rest of the year’s classes over Zoom, Stella wanted to help the communities around her. When friends Aidan Reilly and James Kanoff came together to found The Farmlink Project, she was immediately on board.

“Two big things that stood out to us were this huge amount of surplus on farms being magnified by the media due to the shutdowns and at the same time a new cohort of individuals and families facing food insecurity during a pandemic. There was this jarring amount of food going to waste and families just scraping by to feed themselves,” said Stella. The team started off small, calling farmers to see if they had surplus produce and arranging transportation for food bank deliveries.

As the organization grew and took on new members, Stella transitioned away from lettuce, working as Head of People Operations. Today, she is taking a gap year from Stanford to serve as the Chief of Staff, in charge of managing the 185 full-time team members that facilitate the deliveries between farms and food banks and keep Farmlink running. Working closely with team leads, she tracks the execution of goals, addresses any issues with operations in real time, and ensures that The Farmlink Project’s mission of fighting food insecurity and food waste is central to everyone’s daily work.

“I really like to facilitate community and connection and people working together,” she expressed. “It’s kind of been a natural role for me.”

At Stanford, Stella studies human biology with a concentration in neurobiology supporting cognitive and behavioral health, exploring the ways that neural mechanisms influence the way we think and behave. For her, it is an area of study at the cross-section between the social sciences and the hard sciences, allowing her to explore how change can be motivated through science, empathy, and kindness.

Though her day-to-day responsibilities vary, her central goal is always to facilitate a collaborative and supportive internal community.

“A challenge is making sure everybody is heard and everybody gets taken into account when making important decisions. We don’t have a top down structure because we believe that our best ideas come from the people doing the day-to-day work,” she said. “But looking at how  Farmlink can be the most effective and efficient  boils down to people and individuals working together.”

Ultimately, Stella’s favorite part of her work is seeing how much amplifying individual voices and creating a sense of community can impact what the team as a whole is able to achieve.

“Looking back at it when it was just six of us trying to figure out how to rent a Penske truck, we had no idea that it was gonna become something that so many people would give their time and energy and hearts to,” she said. “And now that feels like a powerful thing.”

Stella, James Kanoff, and Caroline Ricksen in August, 2020.

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Stella Delp’s first role at The Farmlink Project was the “lettuce lady,” calling farms to inquire about surplus greens.

After being sent home from her sophomore spring at Stanford because of the COVID-19 pandemic to complete the rest of the year’s classes over Zoom, Stella wanted to help the communities around her. When friends Aidan Reilly and James Kanoff came together to found The Farmlink Project, she was immediately on board.

“Two big things that stood out to us were this huge amount of surplus on farms being magnified by the media due to the shutdowns and at the same time a new cohort of individuals and families facing food insecurity during a pandemic. There was this jarring amount of food going to waste and families just scraping by to feed themselves,” said Stella. The team started off small, calling farmers to see if they had surplus produce and arranging transportation for food bank deliveries.

As the organization grew and took on new members, Stella transitioned away from lettuce, working as Head of People Operations. Today, she is taking a gap year from Stanford to serve as the Chief of Staff, in charge of managing the 185 full-time team members that facilitate the deliveries between farms and food banks and keep Farmlink running. Working closely with team leads, she tracks the execution of goals, addresses any issues with operations in real time, and ensures that The Farmlink Project’s mission of fighting food insecurity and food waste is central to everyone’s daily work.

“I really like to facilitate community and connection and people working together,” she expressed. “It’s kind of been a natural role for me.”

At Stanford, Stella studies human biology with a concentration in neurobiology supporting cognitive and behavioral health, exploring the ways that neural mechanisms influence the way we think and behave. For her, it is an area of study at the cross-section between the social sciences and the hard sciences, allowing her to explore how change can be motivated through science, empathy, and kindness.

Though her day-to-day responsibilities vary, her central goal is always to facilitate a collaborative and supportive internal community.

“A challenge is making sure everybody is heard and everybody gets taken into account when making important decisions. We don’t have a top down structure because we believe that our best ideas come from the people doing the day-to-day work,” she said. “But looking at how  Farmlink can be the most effective and efficient  boils down to people and individuals working together.”

Ultimately, Stella’s favorite part of her work is seeing how much amplifying individual voices and creating a sense of community can impact what the team as a whole is able to achieve.

“Looking back at it when it was just six of us trying to figure out how to rent a Penske truck, we had no idea that it was gonna become something that so many people would give their time and energy and hearts to,” she said. “And now that feels like a powerful thing.”

Stella, James Kanoff, and Caroline Ricksen in August, 2020.

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Lizzy Marcinkowski is a senior at Georgetown University, majoring in international culture and politics with an emphasis on environmental justice and a minor in journalism. Lizzy has been a member of the Impact Team at The Farmlink Project since winter 2021, helping to produce Faces of Farmlink, feature articles, educational media content, and Farmlink's weekly newsletter. Originally from Spokane, Washington, Lizzy now lives in Washington, D.C and hopes to work in sustainable development following graduation, helping to ensure that all communities have access to fresh air, clean water, and nutritious food. Her favorite fruit is mango and her favorite meal is a homemade vegetarian curry!

Stella Delp

Chief of Staff at The Farmlink Project

Stella Delp’s first role at The Farmlink Project was the “lettuce lady,” calling farms to inquire about surplus greens.

After being sent home from her sophomore spring at Stanford because of the COVID-19 pandemic to complete the rest of the year’s classes over Zoom, Stella wanted to help the communities around her. When friends Aidan Reilly and James Kanoff came together to found The Farmlink Project, she was immediately on board.

“Two big things that stood out to us were this huge amount of surplus on farms being magnified by the media due to the shutdowns and at the same time a new cohort of individuals and families facing food insecurity during a pandemic. There was this jarring amount of food going to waste and families just scraping by to feed themselves,” said Stella. The team started off small, calling farmers to see if they had surplus produce and arranging transportation for food bank deliveries.

As the organization grew and took on new members, Stella transitioned away from lettuce, working as Head of People Operations. Today, she is taking a gap year from Stanford to serve as the Chief of Staff, in charge of managing the 185 full-time team members that facilitate the deliveries between farms and food banks and keep Farmlink running. Working closely with team leads, she tracks the execution of goals, addresses any issues with operations in real time, and ensures that The Farmlink Project’s mission of fighting food insecurity and food waste is central to everyone’s daily work.

“I really like to facilitate community and connection and people working together,” she expressed. “It’s kind of been a natural role for me.”

At Stanford, Stella studies human biology with a concentration in neurobiology supporting cognitive and behavioral health, exploring the ways that neural mechanisms influence the way we think and behave. For her, it is an area of study at the cross-section between the social sciences and the hard sciences, allowing her to explore how change can be motivated through science, empathy, and kindness.

Though her day-to-day responsibilities vary, her central goal is always to facilitate a collaborative and supportive internal community.

“A challenge is making sure everybody is heard and everybody gets taken into account when making important decisions. We don’t have a top down structure because we believe that our best ideas come from the people doing the day-to-day work,” she said. “But looking at how  Farmlink can be the most effective and efficient  boils down to people and individuals working together.”

Ultimately, Stella’s favorite part of her work is seeing how much amplifying individual voices and creating a sense of community can impact what the team as a whole is able to achieve.

“Looking back at it when it was just six of us trying to figure out how to rent a Penske truck, we had no idea that it was gonna become something that so many people would give their time and energy and hearts to,” she said. “And now that feels like a powerful thing.”

Stella, James Kanoff, and Caroline Ricksen in August, 2020.

Lizzy Marcinkowski is a senior at Georgetown University, majoring in international culture and politics with an emphasis on environmental justice and a minor in journalism. Lizzy has been a member of the Impact Team at The Farmlink Project since winter 2021, helping to produce Faces of Farmlink, feature articles, educational media content, and Farmlink's weekly newsletter. Originally from Spokane, Washington, Lizzy now lives in Washington, D.C and hopes to work in sustainable development following graduation, helping to ensure that all communities have access to fresh air, clean water, and nutritious food. Her favorite fruit is mango and her favorite meal is a homemade vegetarian curry!