Garvester Kelley

Garvester (Gar) Kelley is community development director in the community development and policy studies division at the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago. For the past 20 years, he has championed community economic development and individual economic self-sufficiency for marginalized people, both domestically and internationally. Kelley has served as a missionary for the Presbyterian Church (USA) in Eastern, Central, and Western Africa. His service included coordination of educational programs, evangelism, community development, disaster assistance, and hunger initiatives – all with an emphasis on empowerment, sustainability, and local ownership.

Prior to joining the Fed, Kelley served as senior vice president of sustainability and engagement at the Association for Enterprise Opportunity. He was also vice president, Mid-Atlantic Region, at Nonprofit Finance Fund (NFF), one of the nation's leading community development financial institutions. Kelley earned his bachelor’s degree in finance from Hampton University, and masters of divinity and masters of theology degrees from Princeton Theological Seminary.

Professional affiliations

Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago