"Grub is Like Hogwarts" and 4 Other Reasons To Give
This month, Grub's Founder and Executive Director Eve Bridburg challenged her kids to advocate for the organizations they believe in. Inspired by their efforts, she decided to take the challenge herself and asked Grub donors why it's important to give to Grub.
It’s that time of year.
After our Thanksgiving feast next week, which my husband lovingly prepares every year, I plan to sit down with him and my kids to decide how best to invest the money we can afford to give away this year. GrubStreet, as you might imagine, has been at the top of our giving list since the beginning. But this year, I’ve asked my kids to pitch their own ideas about what causes and organizations we should be supporting. I’ve asked them to come prepared to make the case. Inspired by the seriousness with which they are taking this on, I decided to up my own game in making my case for GrubStreet by speaking to a few of our donors about why they give.
Here’s a snapshot of what I learned.
GrubStreet has put Boston on the national literary map. It’s grown from being a small, niche organization to a place that’s broadly known in the country. A lot of people think about Boston in a different way now because of what’s been built here. In fact, people are moving here or closer in because of GrubStreet. The other more visible arts organizations—the museums and the theaters—are wonderful, of course, but Boston has a rich literary history that GrubStreet is keeping alive and remaking for the 21st century.
—Ethan Gilsdorf
It boils down to community and access. In my “normal” life, I sometimes feel I’m with muggles. Grub is like Hogwarts. It’s this one place where I’m with fellow tribe members who understand what I’m doing. It’s really hard to be a writer on your own. People get MFAs to find a sense of community and to network, but for me there was nothing after my MFA until I found GrubStreet. Everything I’ve done associated with Grub has been high quality and almost like a life-long MFA. And the fact that so many can access it is amazing because when I was young the only way you could access this level of training and instruction was by getting an MFA. And when I think of what I paid for my MFA, it’s not something everyone can do. I wasn’t even aware of the obstacles or gates that others may face back then, but I am now.
—Marjan Kamali
It’s a sustainable organization. Every dollar you give can have a direct impact on someone’s life and I think that’s rare. Moreover, GrubStreet brings together people of various backgrounds and I hugely value that for my art. Makes me a better and more aware writer.
—Sharissa Jones
I love the summer youth programs, especially YAWP, and I wish I’d had something like GrubStreet when I was a teen! I think these programs build self-esteem and confidence and allow teens to see themselves as writers, rather than just wanting to be a writer “some day.”
—Elisabeth Carter
“I think the humanities get short shrift. They aren’t the most important thing to a lot of people, and there isn’t as much attention paid when it comes to equitable access as there is for other needs. But the humanities, and I place the narrative arts at their center, are hugely important. In terms of helping people become the kind of human beings they want to be, there’s nothing more meaningful.”
—Christine Gross-Loh, writer
Eve Bridburg
Under Eve’s (she/her/hers) leadership, GrubStreet has grown into a national literary powerhouse known for artistic excellence, working to democratize the publishing pipeline and program innovation. An active partner to the Mayor’s Office of Arts and Culture, Eve was the driving force behind securing chapter 91 space in the Seaport to build a creative writing center. Eve was recently awarded the 2023 WNBA Award by the Woman's National Book Association, an award given every two years to a living American woman who has made exceptional contributions to the book industry beyond the scope of her profession. She is a 2019 Barr Fellow, and having graduated from its inaugural class, Eve remains active with the National Arts Strategies Chief Executive Program, a consortium of 200 of the world’s top cultural leaders, which addresses the critical issues that face the arts and cultural sector worldwide. Eve has presented on the future of publishing, what it takes to build a literary arts center, and the intersection of arts and civics at numerous local and national conferences. Her essays and op-eds on publishing, the role of creative writing centers and the importance of the narrative arts have appeared in The Boston Globe, Huffington Post, Cognoscenti, Writer's Digest and TinHouse. Eve serves on the Advisory Board of The Loop Lab, a new Cambridge-based nonprofit dedicated to increasing representation in the Media Arts and on the Advisory Board of Getting to We, a nonprofit dedicated to civic rights and social action. Eve worked as a literary agent at The Zachary Shuster Harmsworth Literary Agency (now Aevitas Creatve Management) for five happy years where she developed, edited, and sold a wide variety of books to major publishers. Before starting GrubStreet, she attended Boston University’s Writing program on a teaching fellowship, farmed in Oregon, and ran an international bookstore in Prague.
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