Maria Rio (she/her) is the Director of Development at The Stop Community Food Centre and has over ten years of fundraising experience.
Having come to Canada as a refugee at an early age, Maria developed a passion for human rights that now fuels her drive to help locally and make a difference in the lives of people of various marginalized and often inter-sectional groups. After being assisted by many charities and going through an arduous 12-year immigration process to become a Canadian citizen, Maria devoted herself to working in a charity setting to give back to the industry which had drastically and undeniably improved the course of her life. As a woman, a racialized person, an immigrant, and a member of the LGBTQ2+ community, Maria works diligently every day to ensure that she can make a meaningful difference in the lives of these and other often underrepresented groups.