Welcome, Haines Whitacre, SAL’s New Donor Relations Associate!
February 22, 2023
We’re delighted to introduce you to Haines Whitacre, SAL’s new Donor Relations Associate! To help you get to know Haines, we asked her all about her work with SAL, reading habits, favorite pastimes, and her sea-swept origins below.
Welcome to the SAL team. Tell us about your new role!
I am the Donor Relations Associate at SAL, which means I am here to help connect you with the speakers, readings, and public programs you want to support and see flourish in your literary community. It also means I’m the one answering the phone and making sure your gifts to SAL are well cared for.
Where are you from?
I am from Annapolis, Maryland, where I gained a deep love for tributaries and brackish waterways. The Chesapeake bay is where I spent almost every day of my childhood sailing, romping around marshlands, picking bluegrass banjo tunes, and pigging out at crab feasts.
What’s a book that really impacted you as a child?
One of my all-time favorite books as a child was Chasing Vermeer by Blue Balliett because it brought my love of mystery novels into the world of art. Before this book, I’m not sure I knew anything about art, and certainly I didn’t know anything about the historical mysteries, the depths of meaning, and the hidden lives that can be found within an expression of beauty.
What do you like to do in your free time?
When I’m not working, I’m usually dilly-dallying on a piano, trying to make a garden on my tiny apartment patio, creating a large mess in my kitchen while making a far-too elaborate meal, or pestering my cats to play with me. If I’m not at home, I’ve likely ended up at a museum or am wandering along some shoreline with my partner.
What did you do before you came to SAL?
Before I came to this position, I worked in Development and Membership for the Burke Museum. Before that, I was an MFA student at the University of Washington and a college and youth writing instructor. Before that, I was a sailing coach with a couple different regional youth sailing programs working to build access to competitive dinghy sailing in the Pacific Northwest.
Thank you, Haines! The SAL team is so excited to work with you.