When The Journey Ends, The Real Work Begins

“The 2021 Capital Collaborative was such a transformative experience because it hit on so many components of my life: The personal (how race has played a role in where I sit in the world today), the familial (as a board member of my family’s foundation), the professional (as the Director of Philanthropy at a wealth management firm). While I expected I would learn a lot from others, I was not prepared for the ways in which the journeys of the participants – both funders and social entrepreneurs - would lead to huge shifts in my thinking and actions.”

A Professional Reboot: Philanthropy Does Not Have All The Answers

“I am committed to building authentic, trustworthy relationships in the community and to ensuring that our grantmaking is reflective of our community. I will also aid in reducing the implicit bias that exists in many philanthropic processes and make certain that access and trust are at the core of our grantmaking. I don’t have all the answers and twenty years into my career I am finally ok with that. It is time to invest in the real experts in our community to see the shared goal of lasting, systemic change.”

Working To Disrupt Patterns of Racial Inequity In Education

“I’m an optimist by nature. I rarely carry an umbrella when I leave my house because I’m sure it's not going to rain. I’m confident that I can get five things done in the 10 minutes I have before my next meeting. And even in the face of slow progress to fully support Black and Brown student success, I truly believe we can redesign our schools to be equitable places where all students experience love, connection, and support to pursue their goals and passions.”

What Am I Defending? The Lack of Racial Equity In Philanthropy.

“Curiosity opens the door to conversations with folks at different points on their own racial equity journeys. Curiosity allows for interrogation of my own physical reactions and feelings. Curiosity makes receiving feedback – especially difficult feedback – easier. Curiosity builds relationships that move from transactional to trusting.”

Language Is A Powerful Tool: Camelback's New Mission + Vision Statements

“The public health crisis in the last 15+ months has been a season of introspection. The pandemic has affirmed that the racial and economic disparities Camelback Fellows work to change is real. This period in time has also encouraged us to make sure that our mission and vision is aligned with our values and what we want to create in the world. Language is a powerful tool that can order your steps and be the light that others can follow.”

Shame Avoidance to Shame Resilience as a White Person Moving Against White Supremacy

“Since the murder of George Floyd, a summer of uprisings, and the continued police, state, and vigilante violence against Black, Asian, Latinx, and Indigenous people, I have observed white people acting from an increased sense of urgency to restore a sense of ourselves as good. This urgency is more about avoiding our own shame rather than shifting violent systems.”

As American As Apple Pie: An Essay about Structural Racism

“Creating systemic equity is the counterbalance to systemic racism, but it requires a retooling of the whole system, investment in people and communities, and new diverse leadership. Equity requires humbleness and prioritized spending beyond many well-meaning organizations working within the realm of anti-racism. Merely turning the pie so that people of color can now enjoy the portions white Americans have been accustomed to fails to recognize that the entire pie is poisonous.”

An Ongoing (New Year’s) Resolution: Raising Anti-Racist Children

“I get to do really important work supporting Camelback Venture’s Capital Collaborative. For reference, Capital Collaborative is a program that works with mostly white grantmakers and social impact investors who are ready to critically examine and deepen their organization’s commitment to racial and gender equity — but may not know how. I’m proud of this and other work I do in service of building a more just and equitable world — but as a white father, partnered with a white wife, raising three white children I believe it is equally, and on some days more, impactful to be raising our children to be anti-racist.”

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