Acknowledgements

Thanks to the Creator and to my sweet mother, Sheila Jacobs Whaley. Thanks, Momma, for your unconditional love and for teaching me the spirit of giving and generosity of the heart. And to the rest of my family, thank you for always finding a good laugh even in the face of adversity. I love you.

Eternal gratitude to my chosen family—the loves of my life and my soul mates—for your support during this project and in life in general: Will Cordery, Mayra Alvarez Sparacino, Sadye Paez, Michelle Ramos Lopez, Yesenia Polanco, Chris Locklear, Tenney Farmer, and Buddy.

The following foundations provided support for the writing of this book:

Arcus Foundation, California Wellness Foundation, Ford Foundation, Geo Family Foundation, Robert Sterling Clark Foundation, Schott Foundation for Public Education, and The Solutions Project. Thank you for leading the way in reimaging transformational philanthropy.

The following philanthropists, funders, advocates, Indigenous leaders, and all-around good folks provided insights and wisdom to this work:

Andrea Armeni, Dana Arviso, Tamieka Atkins, Ryan Bowers, Kelly Brown, Jennifer and Peter Buffett, David Callahan, Chris Cardona, Anges Chavis, Donna Chavis, William Cordery, Aaron Dorfman, Sarah Eagle Heart, Farhad A. Ebrahimi, Kwabena Allen Frimpong, Jose A. Garcia, Hilary Giovale, Gita Gulati-Partee, Carly Hare, Phillip Jackson, Melissa Johnson, Elizabeth Krause, Gara LaMarche, Melinda Maynor Lowery, Tyler Nickerson, Sarah Lyons, Nevin Öztop, Leticia Peguero, Tia Oros Peters, Cynthia Renfro, Pamela Shifman, Christi Tran, and Dorian Warren.

Thanks also to:

• The staff and board of Native Americans in Philanthropy for being a committed partner in advocating for investment in Native communities.

• My Schott Foundation colleagues for trusting me and supporting my leadership.

• Karen McNeil Miller for taking a chance on me by giving me my first gig in philanthropy and for shaping my worldview about the field of philanthropy.

• Ai-jen Poo for inspiration in so many ways and for introducing me to Ariane.

• Hilary Giovale for being the first white person to ever apologize to me for the transgressions of your ancestors and for being a living example of transformation.

• My Rockwood Leadership cohort who pushed me to take this step, then went above and beyond to make it a reality, especially you, Phil Li. Akaya Windwood, thank you for pushing me to have that “conversation you are not having” and for introducing me to my editor.

• Kevin Jennings for being my hero in so many ways.

• The team at Berrett-Koehler Publishers, especially my editor Steve Piersanti, who have been a huge cheerleader from the start of our relationship.

• Native Youth—all of you—for your resilience and power which give me hope every day. You are my inspiration to do this work.

• The Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina—my people—for keeping me grounded. Healing is our path to a better life.

To my philanthropic elders—the leaders of color who came before me and coached and loved me—I stand on your shoulders: Susan Taylor Batten, Angela Glover Blackwell, Donna Chavis, Louis Delgado, Linetta Gilbert, Susan Jenkins, Valorie Johnson, Peggy Saika, Gladys Washington, to name a few.

To everyone who has worked with me in any way––I’m better off because of you. There are too many names to list, but thank you.

Last but not least, Ariane Conrad, the Book Doula and so much more. You are the most brilliant (and patient) person I’ve ever met. My life is forever changed because of you.