The San Antonio Area Foundation helped plant the seed for a new permanent home for the largest and oldest Native American organization in our region.
It was a $250,000 Area Foundation grant that provided a path for the nonprofit American Indians in Texas at the Spanish Colonial Missions (AIT) to buy a 12,000-square-foot building near downtown that has now become the first-ever American Indian Center and art gallery.
“The Area Foundation was critical in making this a reality for us, not just for our organization but for the San Antonio American Indian community,” said Ramon Juan Vasquez, AIT’s Executive Director.
“It has elevated us to whole different playing field,” he added. “We have now joined the ranks of others who have assets – our assets have been computers and desks that were donated.”
Vasquez recently gave the Area Foundation a tour of the new campus, noting that the art gallery features original artwork from 30 local artists.
Check out a video the Area Foundation produced after our visit with Vasquez at the new center.
The AIT grant represents a new direction for the Area Foundation in being more intentional about directing grantmaking to help those most in need.
New funding was just announced as part of the most recent three-year funding cycle (2023-2025) – providing more than $9 million to nearly 100 nonprofits. Find out more by clicking here.
Hernán Rozemberg is Executive Director for Marketing and Communications at the San Antonio Area Foundation.
