News and Notes from NCFP’s Friends of the Family Network
Friends Focus highlights updates from members of our Friends of the Family network and their cutting edge work. This month features updates from the Solcz Family Foundation; Self Family Foundation; the Arizona Community Foundation; the Surdna Foundation; the Laughing Gull Foundation; the Sobrato Family Foundation and the Clowes Fund.
Are you a current Friend or Leadership Circle member of NCFP with an update or good news about your foundation that you would like to share with Family Giving News readers? Please email us. Interested in learning more about the families involved in NCFP’s Friends of the Family network? Go here.
Welcome Centre Receives $30,000 Grant from the Solcz Family Foundation
The Welcome Centre has received a $30,000 Grant from the Solcz Family Foundation to be used towards their Child Advocacy Program. Every year the Welcome Centre Shelter supports over 250 families with over 500 minor children within emergency shelter. The Child Advocacy Program is a year-long pilot project that the Centre has never had the funds to carry, and now will be able to do so.
Self Family Foundation Funded Center for Human Genetics Opens its Doors to the World
The Clemson Center for Human Genetics officially opened for business this month, celebrating with an enthusiastic gathering of supporters who met with scientists and toured the state-of-the-art facility. The center is housed in Self Regional Hall with eight laboratories and several classrooms, conference rooms and offices for faculty and graduate students.
Arizona Community Foundation Awards $19.3 Million in Grants
The Arizona Community Foundation has announced grants and scholarship distributions totaling more than $19.3 million during the first quarter of its fiscal year, which ended June 30. ACF also will award a loan of $1.05 million to the Phoenix Art Museum through its community impact loan program.
Don Chen Selected as Surdna Foundation’s Third President
The Surdna Foundation’s board of directors announced its unanimous and enthusiastic selection of Don Chen as the foundation’s new president. Chen’s deep personal and professional dedication to advancing social justice is what attracted him to Surdna. Chen currently leads the Just Cities and Regions team for the Ford Foundation. In this role, he transformed Ford’s approach to urban development strategies that reduce poverty, expand economic opportunities and advance sustainability in the U.S. and countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America.
Laughing Gull Foundation Commits $3.9 Million in Grants to Organizations Supporting the LGBTQ Community in the South
The Laughing Gull Foundation (LGF) is pleased to announce the approval of $3,895,000 in grants to be awarded from 2018 through 2020 to 24 organizations supporting the LGBTQ community in the U.S. South. This commitment represents a 240% increase in annual grantmaking for LGF’s LGBTQ Equality Program, and the addition of 12 new grantees. The portfolio reaffirms LGF’s focus on North Carolina and Virginia, and on strategic opportunities to support the LGBTQ community across the US South.
Four Generations In, the Sobrato Family Foundation Has Set the Pace for Bay Area Corporate Giving
In their charitable efforts, the Sobrato family has tried to drive a culture of giving internally and within the larger business community. As part of their strategy, the family gives matching grants to nonprofits to attract new donors or larger donations from existing donors. Over two decades, the Sobrato family and companies have given more than $400 million across the Greater Bay Area. The Sobratos’ philanthropic efforts are an “imprimatur” that sets the model for the larger business community to follow.
Clowes Fund Announces Officers and Directors
Members of The Clowes Fund, Inc. met recently in Indianapolis and elected new directors and officers. The Clowes Fund is a family foundation based in Indianapolis that has been awarding grants since 1952. The Fund’s current geographic priorities are Indianapolis, certain areas in New Hampshire, Maine, Massachusetts and Vermont, as well as Seattle.
Special Thanks: NCFP Friends and Leadership Circle Members
We offer special thanks to our Friends of the Family and Leadership Circle funders who support and sustain the work of NCFP. Our Leadership Circle recognizes a special group of our most generous supporters. Our Friends offer continuing support for our work, ensuring that future generations of donor families can access the best possible resources for sound decision-making. See a complete list of NCFP Leadership Circle and Friends of the Family. Or, for more information, please contact Maureen Esposito at 202.293.3276 or at maureen@ncfp.org.