Bio
Anne is a non-profit and philanthropy expert with extensive experience in homelessness policy and programming. From 2018 to 2024 she served as President and CEO of Union Station Homeless Services. This organization is the county lead agency for 32 cities in north east Los Angeles with a homeless count of over 5,000 individuals and families. In this capacity, Anne helped raise and manage a $38 million budget and a 300-strong staff. Under her leadership, seven interim housing sites were opened resulting in major reductions in street homelessness, five major encampments were mitigated, and housing retention success sat between 97 and 99 percent, one of the highest rates in the US. Anne also oversaw the launch of the Lived Experience Advisory Panel, a group of formerly unhoused individuals providing leadership throughout the County. Prior to Union Station, she served as Chief Executive Officer at the Downtown Women’s Center in Los Angeles. At this Skid Row-based organization, Anne developed and launched a major initiative, the Domestic Violence and Homeless Services Coalition. That effort brought together the domestic and interpersonal violence and homeless sectors to improve services, advocate for federal and state policy change, and increase funding for women experiencing homelessness and domestic violence.
From 2010 to 2016, Anne was the first executive director of Funders Together to End Homelessness. During her tenure, she created and led a national funders affinity group with over 400 foundation and United Way members, focused on evidence-based and systems approaches to ending and preventing homelessness. She was a member of First Lady Michelle Obama’s Joining Forces campaign, which supported veterans, and she oversaw the development of regional funder networks in Los Angeles, San Diego, Houston, Phoenix, Denver, Florida, and Canada. Earlier, Anne worked as a grantmaker and community builder for both the United Way and the Community Foundation of Oakville in Canada. She started her career in corporate communications for Bell Canada, where she worked for 10 years in Toronto.
Anne recently facilitated a nationally-recognized podcast, Changing the Narrative About Homelessness, has spoken at the White House, and was instrumental in developing a federal strategy and funding for homelessness for both youth and domestic violence survivors. She previously served as a Commissioner on the City of Pasadena’s Health and Human Services Commission, was invited to be on the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority Ad Hoc Committee on Women’s Homelessness, and was active on the Steering Committee for the Provider Alliance, a network of over 70 nonprofit organizations working on homelessness.
Education
- BA, University of Lethbridge, Canada
- MDiv, University of Toronto, Canada
Recent Publications and Press
- “The Role of Funders” in Donald Burnes and David DiLeo (eds), Ending Homelessness: Why We Haven’t, How We Can (2016)
- Interview: Towards a Socially Healthy City, My Liveable City (January to June 2021)
- Pasadena Star-News, A common myth: Those on the street came here to take advantage of our weather (March 21, 2024)
- Pasadena Star-News, Should you give money to those experiencing homelessness? (March 21, 2024)
- Pasadena Star-News, On homelessness, mental illness is not the cause (February 9, 2024)
- Pasadena Star-News, At the Rose Parade, my group got to tell the world we can all help solve the homeless crisis (January 5, 2024)
- Pasadena Star-News, Why Housing First does work very well for the homeless (June 4, 2023)
Leadership
- Pasadena Community Access Corporation, Advisory Board Member
- University of Southern California Homelessness Policy Research Institute Member
Languages
English (Native)
Presentations
- At the Pasadena City College Future of Work Conference, Keynote (October, 2023)
- At the Sanders Institute Gathering 2024, Housing Crisis: View from the Community panelist (April 2024)
- At the USC School of Heritage Conservation, Guest Lecture (December 2020)
Awards
- Los Angeles Business Journal Woman CEO of the Year Nominee
- Congressional Woman’s Leadership Award Nominee