Community Foundation plans today for tomorrow's needs

What will be the greatest community need which will require the most philanthropic support in Southwest Florida in the next decade?

It might be providing solutions for teens "aging out" of the foster care system, increasing the capabilities of the area's trauma center, or addressing water quality issues for humans and wildlife. No one knows for sure what problems Southwest Florida will be facing in ten years.

That is why the Southwest Florida Community Foundation has been a leader in the community for 30 years generating the support needed today to fund the solutions for tomorrow's problems.

Twelve years ago the Community Foundation led a consortium of public and private sector funders to save the Harry Chapin Food Bank from collapsing. Since then, population growth and an aging building caused the Community Foundation to challenge the board of the same Food Bank to meet a $100,000 matching grant to build its badly needed new facility.

This same Community Foundation provided the expertise and management to establish a new Arts and Attractions Fund where none existed before leading a privatepublic drive to provide new funding for nonprofits in the arts or attractions fields. This grant cycle provides important funding to support the tourism on which Southwest Florida's economy depends.

When Hurricane Charley devastated many areas of our community, the Community Foundation answered the need with a $100,000 grant to the American Red Cross within the first 24 hours and distributed more than $1.2 million for long-term disaster relief and rebuilding. The Foundation has since established a permanent network of media, business, banking and nonprofit agency partners to raise and distribute the funds necessary in the event of another disaster.

The Community Foundation acts as a resource for nonprofit organizations in performance, grantmaking and leadership training. But it doesn't just provide the funds to strengthen the area's nonprofit organizations. The Foundation partners with professional advisors and individuals in Southwest Florida, combining flexibility and rigorous oversight in the endowment of its funds.

The Southwest Florida Community Foundation will continue to build on partnerships with other community philanthropic organizations, the public sector, and private donors to identify opportunities and solutions for tomorrow's problems.

For more information on the Southwest Florida Community Foundation and what you can do to become involved, please call the Foundation office at 239-274-5900.

The Southwest Florida Community Foundation has been supporting the communities of Lee, Charlotte, Collier, Glades and Hendry Counties through endowed funds for 30 years. With assets of more than $54 million and 311 endowed funds, the Community Foundation has provided more than $25 million in grants and scholarships to the communities it serves.