Staff: Graham Dunstan

Graham joined Friends of the Children as the Director of Marketing and Communications in 2021 with more than 20 years of experience in the nonprofit sector and local government. He leads communications and marketing strategy for Friends of the Children and works to strengthen the organization’s brand and to amplify the voices of the children, families, and communities we serve.

Graham has focused his career on creating positive impact in communities by leveraging storytelling, research, and visibility through grassroots collaboration. Before joining Friends of the Children, he led marketing and communications at the nonprofit organization Americans for the Arts for 17 years, where he founded the organization’s digital strategy, created its blog and social media platforms, managed advertising and visibility efforts, and helped secure media coverage in the New York Times, NPR, The Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, and the front page of USA Today. Graham began his career at the Fulton County Arts Council in Atlanta, Georgia, where he marketed the organization’s outreach programs.

A resident of Jackson Heights in New York City, Graham volunteers with God’s Love We Deliver and has also given time to SAGE and Broadway Cares. He was a member of the Atlanta/Fulton County Ryan White HIV Planning Council and a graduate of the Diversity Leadership Academy of Atlanta. Graham writes short stories and creative nonfiction and taught at The Writers Center in Bethesda, Maryland. He was a Larry Neal Fiction Award winner for the District of Columbia and an Anchorage Daily News creative writing winner. He is currently (painstakingly) writing his first novel.

Graham holds a Bachelor of Arts in English and Art History from Emory University, and a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing from the University of Alaska Anchorage where he taught English Composition and created residence life programming for Alaska Native youth. He is a native Georgian, which seems to find its way into most of his writing. Graham is a natural storyteller, a fierce advocate for LGBTQ+ rights, a dedicated movie buff across genres, a middle-of-the-road bowler in his gay bowling league, a cat dad and an enthusiastic uncle, and is always looking for a reason to travel, especially to Maine.