50th Anniversary

"Stay the course and lead with courage. When we center communities and work together in service of equity, we are stronger and more effective."

"I can't think of a more important time for philanthropy to have the courage to stand up for our vision of an equitable, just and inclusive America where every single one of us belongs. I hope we do not fail to heed that call."

"Keep working together, keep learning from each other, keep sharing our successes and our challenges, and really keep pushing ourselves."

"The sad part about being in philanthropy for 10 years is that we’re still having the same conversations about what grantees want, what communities need, how to show up. My message is simple: just do the thing."

"In an era of backlash against DEI, we need to stand strong. We need to be bold. We need to remember what our stated missions and values are and then live them out."

“Our today was somebody else's tomorrow. It wouldn’t be like this if not for people who were doing what they were doing.” 

“I encourage my peers to make the most of the relationships that are here. Networks are great, but you have to pay attention to them. You have to nurture them and keep those relationships up. When everything seems scary and you just don’t even know how you’re going to tackle some of the issues we’re facing, I appreciate knowing that I have those thought partners."

"Stand tall, stand strong and stand together. We’re witnessing the dismantling of democracy, and that’s fundamentally based on the dismantling of humanity. Philanthropy has always had this unique role sitting between sectors. If we’re going to go down, then we have to go down together, and we have to go down biting."

“Only together can we create meaningful change. We may have different populations, we may be addressing different topics, but if we’re all rowing in the same bigger direction for change, there’s power in that.”

"To go far, go together. That’s the biggest piece of this.”

“In this moment in time – which is so scary and discouraging – my message would be to keep going and to not be afraid. As people working in philanthropy we hold an immense amount of privilege and this is the moment to be using it and to not back down. I have seen, from the work that I do at Collins Foundation, how meaningful it is to our grantee partners to be standing in our values in this moment and continue our commitment to justice and racial equity.  So I really hope foundations can continue to stand in their values and keep the momentum going.” 

"First, take care of yourself. We know there’s a lot going on and our communities need us more than ever, so please take care of yourself.

Next, really spend time getting to know your nonprofit partners and the communities they serve. And when you do, don’t think small, think bigger. Give over multiple years if you can. What our communities need right now are sure partners who are there with them for the long haul. The only way to do that is to take the time to get to know the organizations you are serving. "

"When we talk about courage, innovation and creativity, and commitment to the values we care about, it's going to take some creativity and courage to stay the course here."

"It hasn’t been an easy road, but the care, concern and community built through this network have made all the difference. Anything I’ve done, or we’ve done together, wouldn’t have been possible without this collective of impressive, dedicated people. We can only make the change we need to see when we do it together, in solidarity and unity."

"We've got to have local governments, state governments and federal governments that understand the needs of the people. And we can do a good job of conveying those needs to them and then trying to advocate in ways that governments can fund issues that they should be funding and not abdicating those responsibilities."

"I want to bring in the voice of Elizabeth Peratrovich — a Tlingit woman who successfully brought forward civil rights in the state of Alaska. The first really strong civil rights bill ending discrimination actually happened in Alaska, which a lot of people don’t know, and it was brought by Elizabeth Peratrovich. She’s famously quoted for saying, ‘Asking you to give me rights implies that they are yours to give. I must demand that you stop trying to deny me the rights that all people deserve.’

I think that is such an important quote and sentiment for philanthropy to hold dear in this moment of rising authoritarianism, increasing normalization of racism and bias, and the crushing impact of oppression that communities we’re all in service to are feeling every day. These rights and opportunities are not something that any one of us in philanthropy is giving – it’s something people have always inherently deserved."

"I know that funders are considering whether they should retreat from racial equity and anything DEI.  Even as some institutions reconsider the language of diversity, equity, and inclusion – I say, if you need to for survival, don’t use the words. But find a way to work anyway. Use the power of your money and your privilege to support this work.” 

"You can bury your head in grantmaking and try to go alone, but you’re missing most of the good work — and most of the good work comes from the community built through what Philanthropy Northwest does."

“We all have something to learn from each other. Sometimes I feel so different being in Wyoming, but being with Philanthropy Northwest really just makes you realize that we are all thinking about the same things. And we’re all in different contexts, so we’re thinking about these things from different angles. Now more than ever I think we need our community, and groups like this provide a strong foundation for us to figure out what we already know, learn new things from each other and broaden our perspectives.” 

"A message that I would send to Philanthropy Northwest, its board members, and its membership is a message of gratitude. Over the course of my career across the private sector, public sector and nonprofit sector, Philanthropy Northwest has remained a tremendous resource, especially in uncertain times."

"Beyond deep breathing, I’d say this: this work is a journey — and it’s a journey we get to choose to be on. Leadership is about choice — how we want to show up, how we want to be in the work, and how we choose to engage every day. The value of a network like Philanthropy Northwest is that you don’t have to be on that journey alone. You can turn to a friend, a colleague, or another professional in the network, and know that you’re not by yourself. That’s so important, especially now, when there’s so much uncertainty and change. It’s not really about getting the answers — it’s about knowing someone will pick up the phone or respond to your email. "