Staff

Keeka Grant-Tomlinson (she/they) has been the Program Coordinator at National Health Corps (NHC) Pittsburgh since February of 2024. Prior to joining the NHC Pittsburgh team, Keeka worked as a Field Instructor for the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS) where she mentored diverse student groups, helping them develop their unique leadership styles while participating in backcountry expeditions. Keeka is an avid thru hiker and walked the entire Appalachian Trail from Georgia to Maine (2,193 miles) in 2021 and most of the Pacific Crest Trail (approx. 2,000 out of 2,600 miles) in 2023. While hiking both trails, they ran a fundraiser called Hiking for Hunger, which she helped co-found prior to the Appalachian Trail hike. The mission of Hiking for Hunger was to draw awareness to the prevalence of food insecurity in Western North Carolina (WNC), which is higher than the national average, and simultaneously raise funds for MANNA FoodBank, which serves 16 of the western-most counties in WNC. This unique fundraising method was wildly successful, with $32,000 raised during the Appalachian Trail hike and $40,000 raised during the Pacific Crest Trail hike. Before Hiking for Hunger, Keeka worked for MANNA FoodBank as the Community Market Driver & Coordinator, working directly with community leaders and stakeholders throughout WNC to address the ever-growing need in rural Appalachia. Keeka is an AmeriCorps alum, having served two terms for Project P.O.W.E.R in Asheville, NC. They earned a dual degree in Art Education and Painting & Printmaking from Virginia Commonwealth University School of the Arts. Service is central to Keeka’s life and she couldn’t be happier to be a part of NHC Pittsburgh.

In their free time, Keeka enjoys discovering new-to-her hiking trails and engaging in urban exploration. She’s an avid bookworm and unapologetic lover of all things Beyoncé and Buffy the Vampire Slayer.