Finding Her Way
Meghan Barp finds clarity, permanence, and success in serving Greenville
Meghan Barp pulls into her driveway after a long day at work. When she gets home nowadays, it’s that much more relaxing, knowing she’s truly home. “This is it for us,” the president and CEO of the United Way of Greenville County confides. “We feel like we hit the jackpot with Greenville. I love this work. I’m really happy here. We can’t imagine calling any other place home, as long as Greenville will have us.” Given her steadfast work in leading one of the region’s largest nonprofits and serving the general public, an eviction notice is the last thing she’ll find in her mailbox.
Barp came to Greenville in 2018 after working with the Greater Twin Cities United Way for almost nine years. No one could have predicted the magnitude of her first challenge: meeting the needs of the community during the COVID-19 pandemic. “I was still getting my bearings, and modernizing the United Way, when I got a call I’ll never forget,” the 48-year-old remembers. Greenville County Schools were about to shut down. Could the United Way partner with the district to help students and families? “Without hesitation, I said ‘Yes,’” she says. “It really showed the United Way at our best. We raised five million dollars to help people pay rent, keep the lights on, food on tables, kids’ access to Wi-Fi. We were the center of COVID support and relief, and so many people, civic leaders, and corporations stepped up to do the right thing. They made it happen.”
Afterward, Barp was able to move forward with How We Win, the United Way’s operating roadmap through 2030. The ambitious plan identifies imbalances in Greenville’s economic growth while pointing to extreme needs across housing, childcare, education, and transportation.
“We want to raise $12 million a year to invest in those areas,” she says. “Greenville, and Greenville County, have a history of doing hard things for the betterment of this community. We can solve really tough issues, and my goal is to do my part as a leader to push my team, and others, to come up with impactful solutions.”
Growing up in a small town in Nebraska, Barp quickly recognized the importance of connectivity and community while working in the public library. “Libraries are a slice of humanity,” she explains. “A lot of people pass through and need an ear, someone to listen to them, a desire to connect on a human level.” As a teen, she didn’t have a word for it yet, but it propelled her toward a life in public service.
She majored in human development at the University of Nebraska at Kearny, and then sought a master’s degree in women’s studies at Oregon State University. “That was my jumping point into direct service work,” she says. “That’s when a spark happened around inequities in race, gender, and class, and it gave me language to put into action. There’s a lot you can do to advocate for people who may not have a seat at the table. I wanted action. I wanted to make a significant difference.”
Her drive to do so brought her to New York City, where she worked in all five boroughs for and with the YWCA for seven years. “I quickly learned the needs of working parents—the struggles of not only childcare, but meaningful childcare. Those are values I carry with me to this day. One thing that means a lot to me is that programs I created in New York and Minnesota are still going long after I’m gone.”
When she isn’t working, Barp and husband, Shane Seymour, might be found on the golf course, as she’s recently taken up the sport. “I never thought this would be a thing for me,” she says with a laugh. “I play about once a month. We like to cook, and travel is huge for us, as well as time with our three girls.”
Time continues to be a precious resource as she looks to the future in her “forever” hometown. “We’re no longer a small town,” she says. “We have mid-size, regional issues, and we need a bold and fresh perspective to solve them.” She points to projections that 220,000 more people will move here by 2040. “That’s going to be a challenge,” she predicts. “This city is very special. We’re on all of these top 10 lists. I want us to be on a top 10 list of ensuring quality childcare, figuring a solution to homelessness, closing the achievement gap in schools. I don’t think that’s too big of a dream.”
This visionary will tell you dreams can become reality. She’s living hers.
By the Numbers
40 United Way employees
39 members on the Board of Directors
50 Community Partners
4,000 Hands on Greenville volunteers
5,000 backpacks distributed through the School Tools program
13,000,000 dollars returned to SC residents through VITA income tax assistance program