Kurt Reiber didn’t expect a routine errand to change the course of his life.
Nearly 30 years ago, while working as a senior vice president at KeyBank, Reiber was asked to deliver a donation to Freestore Foodbank and evaluate the organization.
What he discovered at the nonprofit impressed him. Leading him to volunteer, serve as a board member and ultimately become CEO and president. His attention to workforce development, food distribution and working to better the Cincinnati region, created a legacy, leaving the Freestore Foodbank better than he found it. Reiber is set to retire, July 10.
“Kurt has been an amazing leader. He has truly led in some very challenging times,” said Dwinelva Zackery, the board chair at Freestore Foodbank. “The Freestore has grown tremendously in the 15 years under his leadership.”
Zackery added that the net assets of the organization have grown from $5 million to $30 million, and under his tenure, fundraising has increased 264%. Food distribution grew to 40 million pounds annually.
“Those numbers continue to grow and continue to change,” she said.
Reiber worked in commercial real estate lending. After his initial visit to Freestore Foodbank, he began volunteering at the organization’s Customer Connection Center. Shortly after, he was invited to join the board.
“I’ve always been focused on workforce training that we do here at Freestore because we help individuals make a new beginning,” he said.
In 2001, Reiber helped to launch one of Freestore’s cornerstone projects, Cincinnati COOKS! The board raised about $14 million to expand operations, including construction projects and growth of workforce development programs, he said.
Cincinnati COOKS! is a free culinary job training program for underemployed and unemployed individuals. During the 10-week course, participants learn skills such as food safety, inventory management, nutrition and knife techniques, along with broader professional and life skills. The program has been accredited with the American Culinary Federation, according to its webpage.
Reiber spent the next 15 years on the Freestore Foodbank’s executive board, helping guide the organization through major challenges, including the 2008 financial crisis, as demand for food assistance surged.
After more than a decade of service, fellow board members encouraged him to take on a larger role.
“After 15 years on the board, one of the board members said that they didn’t want me to ever leave,” Reiber said.
In 2011, after discussing the opportunity with his family and praying with his wife, Reiber accepted the position of president and CEO.
“The impact that it was having on our community and the people that we were serving — I thought I could use some of my skill set to make a difference,” he said.
Reiber said workforce development continued to be a central focus of his leadership. He later expanded those efforts by launching LIFT the Tri-State, a workforce training program focused on logistics, inventory management, facilities operations and transportation.
The idea was inspired by a visit to the San Antonio Food Bank, where Reiber observed a workforce training initiative teaching equipment operation skills.
He adapted the concept into a structured curriculum, training participants to operate warehouse equipment while also emphasizing teamwork and job readiness.
“We’ve now been operating that for about eight years, and the students continue to come out and get great jobs in the industry and are earning a good living,” Reiber said.
The free job training program is open to adults 18 and older who commit to completing the 10-week training, have basic literacy skills and meet physical requirements. No prior experience is necessary, according to its webpage.
“I think they’re just tremendous,” Zackery said of the workforce development programs created under Reiber. “I mean, in terms of preparing the students to go out and to be self-sufficient and have careers in the culinary industry or logistics, I think it’s phenomenal. I don’t know how many food banks do that. I’m sure there may be others, but that definitely sets us apart in this region.”
Reiber pointed to workforce development as a defining priority, but he said his proudest accomplishment is the development of the Freestore Foodbank’s community resource and distribution center on Rosenthal Way.
This mega-facility includes 225,000 square feet of operational space, 130,000 square feet of dry storage and more than 30,000 square feet of refrigeration and freezer capacity, significantly expanding the organization’s ability to serve the region.
“We’ve not even scratched the surface of what this building will be capable of, and it’s a gift that this community has given us,” he said. “We built, designed and raised all the funds during the pandemic to do this building.”
Reiber added that the building has allowed Freestore Foodbank to work with more partners, such as Amazon, which allows the food bank free delivery services to those who receive fresh boxes of fruits and vegetables.
As he prepares to step down, Reiber leaves behind not only expanded facilities and programs, but a broader vision of what a food bank can be, a place that not only feeds people but also helps them build a path forward.
We’ve got a great team here at Freestore, some amazing partners out in the community that have helped us leverage the resources that we have,” Reiber said.
Reiber’s executive assistant, Carolyn Frank, said his tenure with Freestore was inspirational for her and others at the food bank.
“Your leadership is not about titles, positions or dashboards; it is about one life influencing another. I have seen you lead by example. Your leadership inspires me every day. Thank you for guiding us to such vision and integrity,” Frank wrote in a letter for Reiber sent to CityBeat via email.
Kreg Kessler, who began working at Freestore Foodbank in early April, will assume the president and CEO titles. Kessler has a 35-year career in logistics and food supply, working at stops such as Procter & Gamble and Sun Chemical.
“I’m most well known because I was chairman of the bus system, the Regional Transit Authority, for about six years,” he said.
Kessler said that when the Hamilton County levy passed, it brought sales tax to invest in both the bus system and the transit infrastructure fund. This put about $40 million a year into infrastructure projects in Hamilton County.
Like his predecessor, Kessler began volunteering with Freestore Foodbank before joining the executive team. He also volunteered with other food nonprofits around the city.
Kessler said he is planning to continue steering the organization in its current direction, focusing on hunger and workforce development.
“We’ll continue to expand workforce development; we want to feed the hungry,” he said. “I want to give people the opportunity to bring good meals home to their family so they can address those needs as a family unit too.”
Kessler added that he wants to increase awareness for the region’s families, telling them about their services.
“I think there’s plenty of work to do, trying to get out of all those things,” he said.
It’s no secret that Kessler will take the reins during a heightened food insecurity crisis.
“No one wants to see folks hungry,” Kessler said. “No one wants to see kids hungry. So the work we do is really important in the community.”
At the peak of the pandemic, Reiber said, his food bank served close to 43 million meals. This past year, he said they served 47 million meals. Freestore Foodbank supports 600 locations across 20 counties with food, including colleges, hospitals and food pantries.
“The challenge is this: many of the families we serve are working,” Reiber said. “They’re just not making enough money to make ends meet when something happens, like a car breaking down, so they spent the money.”
Reiber seems optimistic as he steps down. He’s confident in the team he has led to continue fighting hunger and helping the community in the best way possible. But he’s also hopeful about the city. He said he’s always been able to count on the community when his organization has needed it.
“There’s a lot of people out there that want to help, and if you can give them the opportunity to do that, then that help will make the results better,” he said. “We can’t help everybody, but everybody can help someone, and that’s what I think the Freestore is all about.”
Reiber said he will continue to help others in his retirement. He plans to train to be a Stephen minister, a trained nonordained person in a Christian congregation who provides one-to-one, confidential, emotional and spiritual support to individuals experiencing life challenges like grief, divorce or illness. This will be done through his church, Shepherd Lutheran Church in Kenwood.
“I think it’s a good offshoot for what I have done,” he said, adding he is also looking to rock babies in the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital neonatal intesive care unit.