Q&A with Betty Listello

Betty Listello started her career at Goldman Sachs in 1987 and had the opportunity to work on the partnership agreement that helped shape the firm before going public. Now at almost 90 years old, Betty generously spends her time with Nido de Esperanza and The Bridge Project, organizations that help families with young children escape poverty. Betty discusses what inspired her to get involved, her journey of quilting 400+ blankets, advice for others, and more.

You started your career at Goldman Sachs in 1987 and worked at the firm for over a decade. What drew you to GS and what were you involved with during your time here? 

Before starting my career at Goldman Sachs, I worked for the Rockefeller family in both the legal and security areas. Once that job began to wind down, I was introduced to GS Partner, John Cohen, who became a mentor to me. We spoke over coffee, he asked me to hand-write my resume, which was standard practice at the time, and I was hired. I did not necessarily have the same education as others at the firm, but I had an old-fashioned work ethic – I would often work 14, 16, or 18 hours a day – and I was excited about the new opportunity. I started at GS in 1987 in Information Technology as an Administrative Secretary before transferring to the Legal department as a paralegal, where I had the opportunity to work on the partnership agreement in 1998. I retired from GS right after the firm went public.

Post GS, you have made an incredible impact on the lives of women and babies born into poverty – from quilting 400+ baby blankets to supporting The Bridge Project. What inspired you to start quilting and what keeps you going?

One Sunday morning, I was sitting in church listening to the pastor speak about increasing financial contributions to affiliated organizations. One such organization was Nido de Esperanza. The pastor invited someone to discuss Nido’s goals, including helping families out of poverty. Living in New York, and having grown up in California, two great welfare states, I was intrigued by the mission. For the first 1,000 days (three years) of a baby’s life, the organization provides holistic family programming to address the social, emotional, and developmental needs of the most vulnerable babies and parents.

Some volunteers from the church would go up to Nido in Washington Heights to paint or clean facilities for the families using them. At 80 years old, I was unable to make it up to Washington Heights but noticed that babies in my local library would crawl around on the library floor with blankets, while a volunteer would read stories to them, and thought to myself that babies in Washington Heights would benefit from comfortable blankets as well especially while the floors were being cleaned by Nido volunteers. I then taught myself how to quilt using YouTube and books from the library. I set up a spreadsheet to outline color patterns and took photos of each blanket to ensure I was not repeating patterns and colors. After completing 25 blankets in 2018 and learning that they were sometimes the only source of warmth for these babies, I started making more and eventually lost count until a member of the organization told me that I had made over 300 blankets! It became my mission to make it to 400 blankets, which I completed in 2024.

What is the mission behind The Bridge Project and what resonates with you about it most? 

Launched in 2021, The Bridge Project is one of the nation’s largest unconditional cash programs for babies and seeks to solve child poverty in the US. The organization supports healthy development for babies during the first 1,000 days of life by providing their mothers with consistent, unconditional cash on a biweekly basis. It especially resonates with me as an independent woman. The Bridge Project’s founder believes that mothers they work with should be given the complete autonomy to make financial decisions and would better know how to handle finances with real cash. Over time, the evidence of the organization’s success became clear to me, especially after I attended a graduation ceremony for the 3-year-olds who had been a part of The Bridge Project since before birth.

What advice do you have for others looking to expand their philanthropic efforts and impact? 

I think it’s important for organizations, companies, and people to think locally in addition to globally. Think about how you can support with both money and time as I did by spending my time with Nido and my money with The Bridge Project. I would encourage volunteers to do what they feel comfortable doing, and even to start small. If you look in your own front yard, you will find something you can get involved with and where you can make a difference.