August 25, 2022

Ms. Welcomes Anjelica Garcia

by Ms. Foundation

Anjelica Garcia joins the Ms. Foundation as the Director of Major Gifts. 

What brought you to the Ms. Foundation? 

Sandra, who is the HR manager, reached out to me on LinkedIn and I’m also part of a group called Women of Color in Philanthropy and Fundraising (WOC), and Ms. was spotlighted as needing a Director of Major Gifts. After reading the responsibilities and organizational values, I felt like I would be a perfect fit for the position, so it was a combination of word of mouth and getting an update from this affinity group. 

What gets you out of bed every morning? 

I am not a morning person, and it’s actually kind of hard for me to get out of bed, because my bed is so comfortable! But I try to always be conscious and thankful to wake up with my heart beating. I’m happy to be alive. This gratitude gets me up in the morning, and what’s gotten me really excited since I started at Ms. is being able to come to this new job. What I’m most passionate about is advocating for women. I’ve always been passionate about this type of work. I identify as a woman of color and I know there’s intersectionality between different privileges that I have, as well as different disadvantages, but being able to think about impacting the lives of other women is something that brings me joy and is something that I’m happy to do every day. 

What is your biggest achievement to date – personal or professional? 

Just being able to survive in New York City! I’ve been here since 2005, so 17 years, oh my goodness. It’s a tough place to navigate. I came here when I was 18, so I feel like I’ve grown and become my adult self here, and that’s been influenced by my surroundings and the culture and NYC in general. To be able to survive, and even thrive, is a big accomplishment for me. 

What badass feminist or woman inspires you? 

This is a tough one, because there are so many. I think I’m gonna go with my go-to – the first person who always comes to mind for me is Harriet Tubman. I feel like if I was born in her circumstances, I wouldn’t have done anything notable. My name would not be in the history books. Just because she had so many forces against her. She was Black, she was enslaved, she was a woman, she was in the South back in a time when I wouldn’t want to imagine what it would be like. So it’s the fact that she was not only able to overcome all of those “disparities” and “disadvantages,” (these are in quotes because I don’t personally consider them to be disparities or disadvantages) but she was also able to make a name for herself in history. She was able to not only help herself but help other people, which is always the goal in my mind. I really admire her for that. 

What advice would you give to your younger self? 

I would tell my younger self to be patient with myself. Especially in NYC, a lot of people are comparing themselves to others – “I don’t have this,” “I’m not at this stage in my life yet,” and so on. But I find that life is a marathon, not a race. So I need to continue to be patient with myself and know that things will come when they’re supposed to, even if they might not come when you want them to.