Proven Leadership
Local Roots - Global Experience
Relevant Experience
Anthony grew up in Olympia and has worked in public policy at the local, state, national and international levels. He's successfully led governments, non-profits and private businesses.
For the Port of Olympia, his most relevant background is in local government and international business.
LOCAL EXPERIENCE
Local government highlights include serving as Maple Valley’s City Manager and being elected as a King County Hospital Commissioner (served one six-year term). While Commissioner he won the Key Award from the Washington Coalition for Open Government. He was also named “public official of the year” by a local newspaper for his impact as a Commissioner.
INTERNATIONAL EXPERIENCE
International experience highlights include living overseas for about 15 years, mostly in the newly democratizing countries of Central & Eastern Europe shortly after the fall of communism. He’s also spent considerable time in Western Europe, Asia, the Middle East and Latin America.
He was one of the founding faculty members of the Anglo-American University in Prague, the first private college in post-communist Central Europe. There he primarily taught Politics & Government courses. More recently he’s taught International Marketing for St. Martin’s University at their partner school – Inner Mongolian University.
When he was in Europe, Anthony met Tereza – a young Czech lawyer - and they married in Prague, eventually having two children. Pictured here with their then newborn daughter who is now an officer in the US Air Force. Their son is in a trades pre-apprenticeship program. Tereza now teaches 5th grade for the North Thurston Public Schools.
While in Central Europe he founded what became one of the largest public affairs firms in its region. At its height his firm employed 40 professionals and owned offices in Poland, Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia. Clients included the European Union, various government ministries and many Fortune 500 and local corporations.
Signing international business agreements at the Lt. Governor’s office.
Point Ruston’s initial development was spurred by investment that the World Trade Center Tacoma helped attract.
When Hemstad moved back to the US, he was President for the World Trade Center Association’s offices in Tacoma and San Francisco. In those roles, he helped build trade, primarily with Asian markets. He also worked to attract substantial foreign direct investment – notably helping bring in investors that got Point Ruston’s redevelopment started and also the investor who built what is now Pierce County’s largest building – the Marriott Tacoma Downtown at the Convention Center.
Anthony is pictured here with then-US Ambassador to China Gary Locke during a WTC Trade Mission to China.