Tricia Snyder
Tricia Snyder currently serves as Associate Vice President for Development at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, supporting the fundraising efforts of the Cancer and Blood Disease Institute. Her development experience has been in academic medicine, working on major and principal gifts, planned giving, and strategic and campaign planning. Previously, she was at Cedars-Sinai where she was Principal Gifts Officer for the Smidt Heart Institute. Prior to Cedars-Sinai, Tricia oversaw foundation relations and facilitated major gifts for Saint John's Health Center Foundation and John Wayne Cancer Institute.
Tricia has additional experience in corporate finance, accounting, government and law. Tricia holds a master’s degree in Public Administration from California State University, Dominguez Hills, certificate in Diversity and Inclusion from Cornell University, and a bachelor's degree in Politics from Willamette University. She is a graduate of the inaugural cohort of WOC’s Radiant Leadership Institute.
Tricia is a first-generation Vietnamese-American. Her parents were Vietnamese boat people, refugees who fled Vietnam following the end of the war. She grew up in Portland, Oregon, and now lives in Los Angeles with her husband and two children.
In Her Own Words
What is your favorite quote?
“My actions are my only true belongings.” -Thích Nhất Hạnh
Who is your favorite woman fundraiser or philanthropist of color?
As a profession, we need to question “best practices” that support the status quo.
My seven-year-old daughter. She has started fundraising as a junior ambassador and volunteering beside me. She is bright, honest, and determined. When I have to make a challenging decision, I think about how I want her to see me. I also think about the world she will inherit. She drives me.
What inspired you to pursue a career in fundraising and philanthropy in the healthcare field?
It initially started out because I like science. I am constantly amazed how these brilliant medical minds identify and seek to solve problems. As a fundraiser, I see myself as a facilitator – to share the work and passions of the doctors and scientists and connect them to equally passionate donors.
Now, my work has become deeply personal. My son was diagnosed with a rare disease – he’s a true medical mystery. I understand firsthand how medical research breakthroughs can impact families and provide hope.
Additionally, issues of health equity, race equity, transgender medicine, and growing mental health needs have been exacerbated by the pandemic. All of these are opportunities for philanthropy to make a profound impact on the future of medicine and healthcare, and the larger goal of social equity.
As a fundraiser, I see myself as a facilitator – to share the work and passions of the doctors and scientists and connect them to equally passionate donors.
Where do you want to be in 3 years?
Healthcare fundraising and philanthropy has considerable areas for progress including who serves on boards, who donates, and who leads the workforce. As a profession, we need to question “best practices” that support the status quo. I believe it is time for accountability and have real expectations of organizations and leadership.
As I have seen through professional affiliations and conferences, there are few women of color as frontline fundraisers, and significantly fewer in healthcare. I want to play some part in changing that to help make the future more equitable, inclusive, and compassionate.
Do you have any advice for other women of color fundraisers— whether they are in Canada, the United States, or the international WOC community at large?
As an Asian woman, I feel like I’m constantly having to fight off the “Model Minority Myth” and “Bamboo Ceiling.” Even so, I would advise women of color to speak up! It’s never easy, but not saying anything is also a burden to bear. As part of that, we need to advocate, mentor, and sponsor one another. There isn’t just one seat at the table – we can make room for all of us at the table.
