An Unexpected Journey

I joined The California Endowment in 1999 as a program assistant, not even knowing what it meant to have a career in philanthropy. The concept of giving money away for a living in and of itself was strange to me. In my 19 years at that organization, I would hold five different titles and each one allowed me to engage with and learn from a variety of staff across the organization and in the community.

As a program staffer, I learned that I loved the process-intensive focus in the work. Over time, this ability to navigate the process and programmatic aspects of grantmaking made me the perfect liaison to our grants administration department. The experiences and the people were so positive, I would eventually transition to the grants department until my departure in 2018.

Looking back, it might at first seem like a bit of a leap going from studying international relations in college to forging a career in philanthropy. But I pursued my degree because I wanted to right the wrongs of the world, and philanthropy unexpectedly presented itself as a means to realize that. And my passion for social justice has remained a driving force for me in this field. I was initially inspired by all of the participants in the East Los Angeles Walkouts in 1968. Their commitment to fighting anti-Mexican racism and actions to foster greater equity and inclusion in our society made them the most amazing role models. Looking to their example, I am proud to say that I was able to build an amazing career that has focused on social justice, health-care reform, and mental health issues in California.

Beyond those inspirational figures, I can attribute my success to imposing a degree of process on how I managed my career. I knew I had to create a support network and pursue learning opportunities so that I could continuously grow in this profession. If there was something I didn’t know, I would seek out those who possessed that knowledge. I became active with the Grants Managers Network (now PEAK), the Council on Foundations, Emerging Practitioners in Philanthropy, Hispanics in Philanthropy and the Joint Affinity Group (now CHANGE Philanthropy). Later on, I formed my own support group made up of grants administration and management staff from peer foundations in California. This network helped to support my learning so that I could create Frankenstein-like processes of my own to implement at The California Endowment.

I know that how I came to PEAK Grantmaking as its chief operating officer was a journey that I couldn’t have planned for, but it’s one I’ll always be grateful for.