Anne (Parker '86) Krause chosen as Woman of the Year

By Jannette Zorrilla – Assistant Managing Editor, San Antonio Business Journal
Aug 10, 2023

Anne Krause has been a leader from her days of flying military jets to planting her feet in the Alamo City and transforming the 1968 World's Fair site.

The Air Force veteran has served as the president and executive director of the Hemisfair Conservancy for nearly a decade. She co-founded the nonprofit in 2014. Krause oversees a staff of five and 13 board members in all efforts to raise funds — both private and federal — for the purpose of reimagining the 40-acre site into an urban parks district in the heart of the city.

"As Hemisfair is becoming one of the world's great public spaces, there is significant work ahead for the Conservancy to tackle," she told the Business Journal. "I plan to continue building our team and strengthening our organization so we can make an even larger and more meaningful impact through philanthropy and federal grants."

Krause is credited with being a strong voice for her organization, as evidenced by her recent trip to Washington, D.C. where she lobbied Congress for federal funds. "In March, I delivered six pitches in one day and came back to San Antonio with a multimillion-dollar commitment to support economic development at Hemisfair."

She said she is most proud of Hemisfair's augmented reality tree donor recognition app. "It was my idea for honoring donors who are helping add hundreds of mature trees to Hemisfair," she said. Over 120 trees have already been sponsored at Civic Park. Due to the success of the project, Krause said she has been invited to share the idea at a recent symposium.

The San Antonio Business Journal is proud to name Krause not only as a Women's Leadership Award honoree but as its 2023 Woman of the Year.

"Men and women are equally qualified to lead, but women are underrepresented in top positions," she said. "The only way to overcome misperceptions, barriers and gender inequities is for more women to pursue leadership positions and serve as role models."

Since retiring from the military, she's held leadership positions at various nonprofit organizations.

Besides her primary focus at the Conservancy, she serves as president of SA 100. The organization unites San Antonio's women leaders to exchange ideas and create community involvement and mentorship. She sits on the boards of The Nonprofit Council and the Harvard Business School Club of San Antonio and Southwest Research Institute's Board of Advisory Trustees. She is also involved with Leadership Women Texas and the San Antonio Business Forum.

Krause offered this advice to the younger generation who are beginning their careers, "I urge you to believe in yourself, dare to pursue your passions, say 'yes' to opportunities, nurture a growth mindset, seek knowledge, embrace challenges, learn from mistakes (but don't wallow in them,) forge connections, build networks, invite someone to be your mentor, collaborate, support fellow women, insist on equality, prioritize your health and focus on being excellent!"

Watch Anne's acceptance speech here:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1V8W8Cz0wtxdJd0rKqo6Phhetx_2tHAYl/view?pli=1