ower is Giving | Leadership & Annual Reports

OUR FOUNDERS & BOARD

Together, Dawn and Nadia have co-founded one of the Southeast’s only organizations offering culturally aligned, physician- and subject matter expert-led whole food, plant-based lifestyle education and wellness equity programming. Power is Giving serves all, but strategically focuses on communities disproportionately impacted by lifestyle-driven chronic illness; long neglected by policy, poor healthy food access, lack of evidence-based lifestyle education and burdened by systemic wellness inequities.

Dawn Hilton-Williams

Co-Founder/Executive Director

Dawn is Co-Founder and Executive Director of Power is Giving, Inc., a Charlotte North Carolina–based nonprofit she’s led for more than a decade. Since shaping the organization’s early community work in 2011 and guiding its formal nonprofit operations beginning in 2016, Dawn has provided leadership grounded in governance, mission clarity and direct responsibility to the communities served, while spearheading organizational strategy partnerships, grant stewardship, growth and program leadership.

With more than a decade of public-sector management experience through her leadership roles with the City of Charlotte across departments including Solid Waste Services and Neighborhood Development, Dawn's public-sector foundation strengthens operational discipline, while reinforcing a community-first approach that treats wellness education as both a health strategy and equity strategy.

Dawn holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Virginia State University, a certification in nonprofit leadership management from Duke University and. is a whole food, plant-based nutrition professional through eCornell and the T. Colin Campbell Center for Nutrition Studies.

Author of two physician-endorsed books, Dawn's also a columnist for Pride Magazine Charlotte, a longstanding bi-monthly African American business and lifestyle publication, where she writes about wellness equity and culturally grounded lifestyle education.

Nadia Hilton Adams

Co-Founder & EDD Fit & Fuel Tennis Program Lead

Nadia is Co-Founder of Power is Giving and serves as Program Team Lead for the organization’s Eat Drink Disrupt (EDD) Fit & Fuel Tennis program. A Charlotte native, Nadia’s a former Division I tennis athlete and proud graduate of North Carolina A&T State University, where she helped lead the women’s tennis team to two consecutive conference championship berths.

Nadia’s relationship with tennis was rigorous, as she played year-round tennis, competing at a 4A varsity high school tennis program and was nationally and regionally ranked as a junior USTA player, where she cultivated discipline and resilience within highly competitive environments.

Her commitment to community engagement began alongside her athletic journey. In 2011, began providing monthly youth fitness and mentorship activities within community centers across Greenville, SC. Later that year, Nadia’s athletic, academic and service excellence converged when she won Maria Sharapova’s “Use Your Instinct” national competition, earning a spot on Tennis Channel and a day hitting around with formergrand slam champion Maria Sharapova. To thank her, Nadia raised atotal gift of $12,000 in support of Maria’s charity at the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

Nadia also brings curriculum-centered instructional tennis and youth fitness expertise to her leadership role, having served as a Nike Tennis Camp instructor at Florida International University’s campus. Nadia’s works fulltime as a Business Manager with Mecklenburg County.