Introducing Anna Huntington
This month, we welcome back a team member to First Peoples Fund’s (FPF) staff — Anna Huntington. Her abundant passion, experience, and knowledge will contribute to FPF’s mission to uplift Native artists and culture bearers in these challenging times.
Meet Anna Huntington
Grants and Individual Giving Manager
As a two-time Olympic rower and bronze medalist, Anna joined the first all-women team to compete in the America’s Cup in a time when women’s sports were beginning to gain mainstream attention. Anna penned a book, Making Waves, that chronicles her experience.
“I was an athlete my entire life, a competitive swimmer from the age of seven through college,” she says. “I joined the rowing team in college and ended up competing in the 1988 and 1992 Olympics. You often hear about the sacrifices people make in order to go to the Olympics, but I honestly felt so fortunate. I would wake up excited to go and row every day.”
Years of dedication to her sport, being a team player, and writing are skills Anna brings to her position as Grants and Individual Giving Manager at FPF. This new and exciting role will expand FPF’s efforts to bring in individual donors. The hybrid position reflects FPF’s need to fill the grant writing/grants management role and add specific individual giving responsibilities as we move toward diversifying our revenue sources.
Anna previously served as First Peoples Fund’s Development Director for three and a half years and has been working with us since early this year to raise significant foundation funding. She also worked for the Women's Foundation of Minnesota and as executive director of Arts Rapid City. Anna has a bachelor’s degree in English from Harvard University and master’s in Journalism from Columbia University. Her freelance journalism about women’s sports appeared in publications ranging from The New York Times to Glamour.
“We’re delighted to have Anna back on staff,” says Sonya Gavin (Diné), First Peoples Fund’s VP of Advancement and Communications. “I’ve had the pleasure of working with her since I joined First Peoples Fund earlier this year. And in this new position, she has hit the ground running with her knowledge of First Peoples Fund’s programs, grants portfolio and strategic framework. We appreciate and deeply value her writing experience and the work ethic she gained as an athlete. She will contribute greatly to growing our resources for our community of culture bearers & artists and the Indigenous Arts Ecology.”
“As an athlete, you have your goals and your single-minded plans for reaching them, and you get up every day and make it happen,”
“As an athlete, you have your goals and your single-minded plans for reaching them, and you get up every day and make it happen,” Anna says. “I learned a degree of focus and concentration from having to practice that for all those years.”
Anna is working remotely from her home in Minneapolis, the home base for her family. She and her husband, Stewart, raised two children. Their son is working his dream job teaching in Colorado while their daughter has picked up rowing in college.
Anna’s own love for the water and being a team player hasn’t faded.
“I love the team at First Peoples Fund,” she says. “Feeling a part of this group of committed people is inspiring. I always enjoy leaning in with a group of people, knowing that I’m bringing my best to benefit the team.”
