# Avista

> Avista is a VC fund in Spokane backing Non Profit and Education. See 25 investments, check sizes, portfolio and contact details. Updated Aug 2026.

- Type: VC Fund
- Location: Spokane, United States
- Total investments: 25
- Last investment: Oct 2024
- Lead investor: 68%
- Last updated: Aug 2026
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/avista
- X (Twitter): https://www.twitter.com/avistautilities
- Website: https://www.avistacorp.com/home/Pages
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/avistautilities

Avista is a VC fund in Spokane focused on Non Profit and Education. Avista Corporation (Avista Corp.) is an energy company engaged in the generation, transmission and distribution of energy, as well as other energy-related businesses. The Company operates in two business segments: Avista Utilities and Ecova, Inc. (Ecova). Avista Utilities is an operating division of Avista Corp. that comprises of its regulatedutility operations. Avista Utilities generates, transmits and distributes electricity and distributes natural gas. The utility also engages in wholesale purchases and sales of electricity and natural gas. Ecova is an indirect subsidiary of Avista Corp. (79% owned as of December 31, 2012) provides expense management services for utility and telecom needs, as well as strategic energy management and efficiency services that include procurement, conservation, performance reporting, financial planning, facility optimization and continuous monitoring, and energy efficiency program management for commercial enterprises and utilities.

## Contacts

5 contacts available for Avista. Shizune tracks 8 team members at Avista. Sign up free to unlock them: https://app.shizune.co/sign-up/investor-profiles/find-team-emails/avista?utm_source=investor_profile

## Investment focus

### Industry

| Industry | Investments | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Non Profit | 12 | 48% |
| Education | 4 | 16% |
| Service Industry | 4 | 16% |
| Energy | 3 | 12% |
| Advocacy | 3 | 12% |

32 industries tracked in total.

### Stage

| Stage | Investments | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Grant | 17 | 68% |
| Series A | 4 | 16% |
| Seed | 1 | 4% |
| Series B | 1 | 4% |
| Funding Round | 1 | 4% |

6 stages tracked in total.

## Team

| Name | Title | Investments | Profile |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Anil Valbh | Founder | 0 | https://shizune.co/investors/profile/anil-valbh |
| Christopher Drake | Manager of Resource Optimization and Marketing | 0 | https://shizune.co/investors/profile/christopher-drake-3ca5 |
| Ethan Jelinek | Sr. Program Manager - Application Delivery | 0 | https://shizune.co/investors/profile/ethan-jelinek |
| John Hairston | Chief Compliance Officer | 0 | https://shizune.co/investors/profile/john-hairston |
| John Holland | CFO | 0 | https://shizune.co/investors/profile/john-holland-2 |

## Investments

| Company | Description | Amount | Stage | Date | Website |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Sky Lakes Medical Center | Sky Lakes Medical Center offers inpatient, imaging, hospitalist, home health and all types of medical services. | $5K | Grant | Oct 29, 2024 |  |
| Southern Oregon Child & Family Council | Southern Oregon Child and Family Council operate as a non-profit organization, the organization offers medical, dental care, and so on. | $3K | Grant | Oct 29, 2024 |  |
| Society of St. Vincent de Paul USA | Society of St. Vincent de Paul USA is a Catholic lay organization dedicated to feeding, clothing, housing, and healing individuals and families who have nowhere else to turn for help. | $10K | Grant | Oct 29, 2024 |  |
| Southeast Alaska Food Bank | Southeast Alaska Food Bank provides access to nutritious food for those in need, serving as a community bridge between those who want to help and those who need assistance. | $10K | Grant | Oct 29, 2024 |  |
| Center for Inclusive Entrepreneurship | Center for Inclusive Entrepreneurship is a nonprofit that empowers individuals with limited resources in marginalized rural communities to achieve business ownership. | $2.5K | Grant | Oct 29, 2024 |  |
| Spokane Independent Metro Business Alliance | Spokane Independent Metro Business Alliance is focused on creating an inclusive, resilient, and sustainable local business environment by empowering entrepreneurs with the tools, education, advocacy, and financial resources to succeed | $7.5K | Grant | Oct 29, 2024 |  |
| Valley Community Center | Valley Community Center is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that provides activities to the Valley community. | $1.3K | Grant | Oct 29, 2024 |  |
| NAMI Far North | NAMI Far North provides support, education, advocacy, and a network of support for people with mental illness, their families, and friends. | $1K | Grant | Oct 29, 2024 |  |
| Bonner County Skatepark Association | Bonner County Skatepark Association is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization focused on promoting, enhancing, expanding, and providing more access to skateboarding for residents of all ages across the county. | $1.5K | Grant | Oct 29, 2024 |  |
| AHANA | AHANA is a nonprofit focused on supporting multiethnic and multicultural business owners and communities in the Inland Northwest. The organization provides education, technical assistance, networking, business development resources, and advocacy. | $10K | Grant | Oct 29, 2024 |  |

10 of 25 investments shown.

## Co-investors
- [Blue Bear Capital](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/blue-bear-capital) — VC Fund, 4 deals together
- [Congruent Ventures](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/congruent-ventures) — VC Fund, 4 deals together
- [City Light Capital](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/city-light-capital) — VC Fund, 3 deals together
- [Earth Foundry](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/earthfoundry) — VC Fund, 3 deals together
- [Earth Foundry](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/energy-foundry) — VC Fund, 3 deals together
- [National Grid Partners (NGP)](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/national-grid-partners-ngp) — VC Fund, 3 deals together

## Similar investors

### Similar stage
- [Scottish Enterprise](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/scottish-enterprise) — VC Fund
- [Foundation for Innovation and Technology (FIT)](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/foundation-pour-l-innovation-technologique) — VC Fund
- [Business Finland](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/tekes) — VC Fund

## FAQ

### What does Avista invest in?

Avista invests primarily in Non Profit, Education and Service Industry startups, most often at Grant and Series A stage. Most of the 25 investments tracked by Shizune back companies in United States. The Investment Focus section breaks down every industry, stage and country in the portfolio.

### How do I contact Avista?

Public channels for Avista include LinkedIn, X (Twitter) and the website linked on this profile. For a verified work email and phone number, create a free Shizune account — contact data is searched across 20+ sources and validated before delivery, so your outreach lands in the right inbox.

### Who are the partners at Avista?

The team at Avista includes Anil Valbh (Founder), Christopher Drake (Manager of Resource Optimization and Marketing) and Ethan Jelinek (Sr. Program Manager - Application Delivery), among 8 team members tracked by Shizune. The Team section lists each member with their title, investment count and links.

### Is Shizune's investor data accurate?

Yes — every stat on this profile is calculated from confirmed public funding rounds monitored across hundreds of sources since 2020. This profile was last refreshed in Aug 2026 and is updated monthly. Spotted something off? Use the “Suggest an edit” link near the top of the page.

# About Shizune
Shizune.co is an investor database. Core features:
- 48,091 startup investors (angels, VCs, accelerators, and others)
- Email, phone, LinkedIn (for intros), socials, and other contact data
- Updated daily from public funding news
- CSV and Excel export

The User can access the full database FOR FREE after signing up: shizune.co