Get to Know Us: Q&A with Elias Arkham

Elias, thank you for taking a moment to share a bit about yourself during one of the busiest – and most wonderful – times of the year: giving season! How does your work life change as the calendar year comes to an end?
I’m lucky that my job covers a pleasantly wide range of tasks! This time of year, I’m spending most of my time working with the Finance and Development teams to get all the year-end giving that our donors point towards us and our partners into our multiple databases. We try to work with whatever method of donation works best for each donor, and that means that there are a ton of different ways that those donations come in, and they all need to be properly accounted for across multiple teams.

SPF is the first nonprofit you have worked for! What do you like about working in the nonprofit space?
In the past, I’ve worked in some disparate industries, and I’m appreciative of the work that our team does to recognize each other as human beings rather than solely as employees. I think that since we aren’t all anxiously grinding towards a sales goal or too worn down from extended crunch time that we’re more able to bring our human selves to work. And because connecting humans to parks and public spaces is our goal, I feel a good harmony between how the job feels and how it operates.

You are the first point of contact for many people who call or email SPF. What do you think is most important or helpful to share with those who might not know much about our organization?
Well… I suspect that our readers already know that we aren’t the City of Seattle’s Parks Department, but that is the most common question I get! I think the simplest thing to share is just to let folks know we are here to help bridge the gap between folks who want to improve, enjoy, or build our parks and public spaces and the governmental or funding entities that might be too daunting or labyrinthine for a single individual to navigate. That sentence didn’t end up as simple as I’d intended, but that’s what you get for asking me instead of one of our talented grant or copy writing folks.

You’ve been on the SPF team for over two years. How has your job evolved or changed over time?
Plenty has changed in the last two years, but the core of my job has always been connecting various parts of the organization together. Donors to the Development team, board members to management, lunches into hungry coworkers. When I joined the Foundation, we weren’t even in our new office space at the Bullitt Center, and we had about a third less staff than we do now. It’s been lovely to watch folks join our team and get to know them and watch our goals and capabilities grow alongside.

As a lifelong Seattle resident, you’ve seen the region grow and change in so many ways. Is there any institution, park or public space that you’ve enjoyed all along? Additionally, have you discovered any new spaces through your work with Seattle Parks Foundation?
There are so many! My favorite park is Fremont Peak Park, a little hidden spot with an awesome view out towards Ballard. I grew up in North Seattle, so working at the Foundation has given me a lot of great opportunities to grow more familiar with the South end. Special thanks to the folks from the Duwamish Valley Resiliency District for showing me around South Park, especially Duwamish Waterway Park.

You are known among our staff for your kind and easygoing attitude. We are all grateful for how well you can stay calm in any storm! What tends to keep your spirits lifted when things get busy?
Everyone on the team is working towards the same goals, and being able to say when I need backup or have too much on my plate gives me the confidence that we’ll get everything sorted out by the end. Even if someone gets frustrated, I know that we can talk the problem through and solve it. But, since we’re in the holiday season I’d be remiss not to mention treats! Taking a break for a coffee and a savory pastry gets me through the holiday drizzle.