Team

In late 2014, Charlotta (Lotta) Sjoelin learned that HomeStart, a local women’s shelter in Chapel Hill, was in need of something as basic as pillows. Shocked that a place intended to provide safety and healing could lack such an essential, she delivered pillows herself, only to discover even deeper needs. If a shelter was meant to transform lives, how could residents thrive in such stark, uninspiring conditions? Heartbroken, Lotta went home and cried and then resolved to act.

She envisioned turning the shelter’s rooms into safe, dignified, and uplifting spaces where residents could truly begin to heal. Partnering with the Inter-Faith Council, which operated HomeStart, Lotta launched a simple idea: invite people to “Donate a Room” for $500. She reached out to retailers like Lowe’s, World Market, IKEA, Sherwin Williams, and Eatman’s Carpet & Interiors, and began renovating one room at a time.

As momentum grew, larger gifts made it possible to restore common living areas, children’s playrooms, and even outdoor gardens. Volunteers of all ages and backgrounds including youth groups, fraternities and sororities, churches, and businesses joined in. What began with a single pillow had sparked a movement. Love, as Lotta proved, is a powerful catalyst for change.

Tina Clossick has spent her career helping communities thrive by expanding access to opportunity, strengthening lives, and transforming environments that support well-being. As a nonprofit and philanthropic leader, she builds trusted partnerships, mobilizes resources, and leads growth that delivers lasting impact. She is driven by the belief that opportunity, stability, and supportive spaces can change the trajectory of someone’s life.

Tina is committed to solutions that put people first. She founded Kidzu Children’s Museum in 2005 on the belief that early hands-on learning experiences are critical to lifelong success and launched 100 Women Who Give a Hoot CHD in 2018 to empower collective giving that strengthens grassroots nonprofits to better serve their communities and expand a culture of local philanthropy. Her career has also spanned key leadership roles at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business and Coastal Credit Union, where she championed initiatives that expanded access to education, housing stability, and essential resources across North Carolina.

At A Lotta Love, Tina leads efforts to expand trauma-informed, beautifully designed shelter spaces so individuals in crisis can rebuild their lives with dignity and renewed hope.