Leighton Britton

Leighton Britton, Development Associate
212-400-3952
Leighton@echoinggreen.org

Leighton graduated cum laude from Wake Forest University in 2005, and began a year of full-time service with AmeriCorps at Community Health Services, a health care nonprofit in Charlotte, NC. After completing her AmeriCorps service, she moved to New York City where she worked in advertising sales for a national radio corporation. While working in advertising sales, Leighton studied Business Management at Columbia Business School. Leighton has always been passionate about nonprofit development and fundraising, and felt that the corporate and classroom experience were an excellent complement to her nonprofit work. For her last semester at Columbia, Leighton interned with two NYC nonprofits, Common Cents and Synergos, in order to gain more hands-on experience in the NYC arena of social change work. Leighton holds a BA in English with a minor in Women and Gender Studies from Wake Forest University, a certificate in Business Management from Columbia Business School, and a certificate in Nonprofit Management from Duke University.    

Why do you do what you do? (wdydwyd)

wdydwyd sign: I am only one, but I am one.  I cannot do everything, but I can do something. 

I believe that each and every one of us has something unique to contribute to humanity, but sometimes people may feel like they do not have enough or have anything to offer. Social change missions are remarkable in that they are entirely inclusive vehicles for change and they do not discriminate. Whether you can give a dollar, an hour of your time, or the clothes in your closet that you haven't worn for 10 years, you are making a difference in someone else's life!

I do this work in honor of…

…hard to answer!  There are individuals that motivate me with my life and my career goals, but there are also historical movements, political decisions, influential books, strangers on the street – the list goes on of the factors that play an important role in my motivation to do this work.    

What is the most surprising part of your job?

The strength of the EG community – my job title doesn’t mention cheering on a co-worker’s band or grabbing ice cream with fellows, but hanging out with staff and fellows is a frequent and awesome perk. It has been really wonderful to learn from so many interesting, passionate people.  

When not working, what are you caught doing?

Visiting my family in NC!  

As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?

At age 10, I wanted to be a marine biologist working for a manatee protection agency. Considering I am terrible at science, the marine biology career was not in my future.

What is your favorite podcast or blog and why?

My favorite blog is Tactical Philanthropy – interesting news articles, interviews, online debates, opinion pieces, etc. It’s a convenient one-stop place for current philanthropic happenings.