Inspiring for the future - The Community Foundation of Louisville

2020

inspiring

for the future

A MESSAGE FROM THE BOARD Working together to inspire for the future.

A LETTER FROM THE BOARD

What is unique and marvelous about the Community Foundation of Louisville is that we are able to connect donors and their philanthropic interests with the needs of the community. It’s a rare position that we’re in because we know our donors and we know our community.

It’s those people and those relationships that help a community aspire, grow, and ultimately lead as an example of how when we all work together for good, we create an environment that demands equity and drives success. Because of the foundation we’ve laid for more than 35 years, we’ve become a leader for change.

We’re a perpetual institution – we’re forever – which is a pretty rare concept in the modern world. But that perpetuity gives us a remarkable platform on which to operate. It isn’t a matter of the current administration leaving a legacy, or factions of us thinking in silos: it’s everyone building together for the long term. Each of us needs to think about how we move forward because none of us are here forever. The Foundation

is enabling people to think about the impact that they can have beyond their own lifetimes.

It’s a constant process of education and adaptation, of listening and discovering, of generating ideas, talking with others, and learning at every juncture. And what all of these things lead to is what I find most important: connection. How much greater potential we have for accomplishing things when we come together, when we hear one another, understand each other. We work with individuals of all backgrounds, nonprofits, government agencies, funders of all varieties. But we all have one very important thing in common, that’s the community we’re collectively building to improve. It’s that bond, that essential nature of unity that allows us to do more, strive harder, and live better. Community is the root of our name and the source of all we do. We must keep that in mind as we continue to grow and build for the future.

STEPHANIE SMITH board chair

FUNDHOLDERS & PARTNERS Advocates of the Community Foundation come from all over the area, with different backgrounds, professions, and strengths. But one thing they all have in common: the commitment to be a force for good.

FUNDHOLDERS & PARTNERS

HENRY V. HEUSER, JR. fundholder

H “ I’m really a fan of how the Community Foundation of Louisville has supported creative improvements to the way the program started out 20 some odd years ago, and it gives me a great sense of satisfaction and comfort to know that when I’m gone, that the same infusion of talent and evolution will happen for the better.”

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enry V. Heuser, Jr. likes to say that he and the Community Foundation of Louisville stay “attached at the hip.” It’s been that way for decades. Henry strongly supports a wide range of causes, including public education, public parks and libraries, environmental efforts and the arts, particularly the orchestra, a love of his since he saw his first performance while still in elementary school. “It was really a revelation,” he recalls. “I didn’t understand how 55 to 70 players coordinate their instruments together and was completely enthralled.”

More recently, the Community Foundation helped Henry meaningfully impact Louisville’s need for a denser urban tree canopy after his appointment as co-chair of the Louisville Metro Tree Advisory Commission. “It’s a social justice issue and the Community Foundation has really been helpful as we have evolved now into an organization called TreesLouisville,” he says. “As a result of their support and help, we have raised a tremendous amount of money and have planted tens of thousands of trees. We’re growing into a major influence with certain areas such as Rubbertown where we’re planting 10,000 trees because that’s the source of our major air pollution, and we are going to take on a 54,000 tree campaign.”

As a part of the Community Foundation’s legacy funds, Henry appreciates the Community Foundation’s expertise as times change. “Especially in our scholarship area and also the Vogt Innovation and Invention Award,” he says. “Business has changed. I’m really a fan of how the Community Foundation of Louisville has supported creative improvements to the way the program started out 20 some odd years ago, and it gives me a great sense of satisfaction and comfort to know that when I’m gone, that the same infusion of talent and evolution will happen for the better.” •

“ As a result of their support and help, we have raised a tremendous amount of money and have planted tens of thousands of trees.”

COMMUNITY FOUNDATION OF LOUISVILLE

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FUNDHOLDERS & PARTNERS

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ASHLEY NOVAK BUTLER fundholder

A

shley Novak Butler, the Executive Director for Lift a Life Novak Family Foundation, runs a small shop locally, just herself and one other staff member. When she wanted to create a Hunger Innovation Fellowship, she knew exactly who to lean on.

“I don’t know that we’ve had any other place in the community to partner with for these things,” she says.

In 2018, the Hunger Innovation Fellowship was funded to provide social, intellectual, and financial capital to research opportunities for a systemslevel change within Jefferson County, Kentucky’s food ecosystem, which could

“ I don’t know that we’ve had any other place in the community to partner with for these things.” help elevate and accelerate current efforts to end food insecurity. That’s just another role the Community Foundation provides: identifying community need and partnering with others to create and build plans to work to address the needs.

Ashley is a passionate advocate for folks in need and her foundation supports a wide range of projects. She’s played an instrumental role in initiatives targeting

hunger relief, leadership development, early childhood education, juvenile diabetes, and more. She says the Community Foundation always connects her to key partners who ensure her efforts make an impact. “When I was just getting connected in Louisville, the Community Foundation was a great place to start to kind of reach out and say, ‘Hey, I need help with starting this foundation. Can you give me some insight into your grant-making process?

Or help me make connections in the community?’ So, I ended up meeting with the President at that time and had a long conversation, which led to a really cool partnership between our two organizations.”

She likens the Community Foundation to a powerhouse, one that still inspires her.

“ It started off with just a conversation about philanthropy in Louisville and it turned into us working together to fund a food systems fellowship.

It’s turned from a learning partnership to an actual funding partnership that makes a lot of strategic sense for our foundation.” •

COMMUNITY FOUNDATION OF LOUISVILLE

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FUNDHOLDERS & PARTNERS

MARSHALL BRADLEY fundholder, former board chair

M “ My nine years on the

Community Foundation Board lit the fire and passion in me for nonprofit work. It raised my awareness of what was possible in this community. It raised my desire to make a change and be impactful.”

arshall Bradley credits the Community Foundation for helping him find his calling. As president of the Lincoln Foundation, he works to provide educational enrichment programs that develop and support youth in overcoming barriers to achievement.

“My nine years on the Community Foundation Board lit the fire and passion in me for nonprofit work. It raised my awareness of what was possible in this community.

It raised my desire to make a change and be impactful,” he says. “I would not be president of the Lincoln Foundation if it hadn’t been for my term on the board of the Community Foundation.”

At first, he recalls, the Lincoln Foundation was just an idea stirring in his mind. The assistance from the Community Foundation proved invaluable. “They did their part in helping identify the needs in the community and then connecting those needs with people in the community that wanted to do good but weren’t quite sure how. And so being a conduit, being a connector really resonated with me.”

As Marshall continues to create lasting change, he carries the Community Foundation’s guidance with him, particularly the strategies and techniques he was exposed to and the Community Foundation’s ability to open doors for the Lincoln Foundation. “They have helped identify our areas of expertise to several donors. They’ve also helped us consider some capacity-building opportunities and they will provide you with guidance in development and other areas of our work that they have expertise in,” he says. “They’ve become a real resource for organizations like mine.” •

“ I would not be president of the Lincoln Foundation if it hadn’t been for my term on the board of the Community Foundation.”

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COMMUNITY FOUNDATION OF LOUISVILLE

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our journey

EST. 1984

Creation of the Community

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Based on the Foundation’s focus

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on youth at the time, the Foundation completed its

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three-year Child-Care Training Project. Over 1,200 child-care center directors and workers received

Computers were first

training to improve child care for thousands of

installed in the LCF offices.

1984

1987

The Louisville Foundation is reorganized as the Louisville

families in the community.

1991

1993

The George and Mary Alice Hadley Fund was created to support arts and humanities in Louisville. The fund

Community Foundation (LCF)

1995

LCF changes its name to the Community Foundation of Louisville (CFL).

continues to evolve and launched the

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A. Barry

President &

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us

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Hadley Creatives program in 2017.

Nearly $1 million dollars in scholarships established by donors is

Delta Dental Plan of Kentucky

awarded to 280 students in 2012 growing to more than

works with the Foundation to create the first

CEO C. Dennis Riggs retires

corporate endowment fund to provide funding

after 17 years. The Board appoints

years (2019-2020) to more

for the corporation’s annual charitable giving.

Susan A. Barry as President & CEO.

than 600 students.

2005

2008

2009

The Felix E. Martin, Jr. Foundation was established as a supporting organization of the Community Foundation with Mr. Martin’s

2011

$3.1 million in the last two

2012

The Baylor Landrum, Jr. Society is created in memory of Mr. Landrum to recognize legacy

bequest of $50 million. The Foundation supports

members who create endowment

education, civic, and cultural needs of the

funds through their estate plans.

residents of Muhlenberg County.

99

8-2

000: Barb

ar a

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Creating a community where people and place thrive

S a n df o r d

B o a r d C h a i r,

N.

The first annual Vogt Awards grant was distributed from the Vogt Invention & Innovation Fund. The Vogt Fund provides direct support to early-stage company founders with

The Community Grants Program begins. Throughout

a goal of helping to strengthen Louisville’s economic health and inspire entrepreneurship. Since its inception, the Vogt Fund has

its ten years, the program awarded

supported 84 start-ups with a Vogt Award, totalling $3.5 million

220 grants totaling $3.8 million.

in grants.

1997

1998

2000

Barbara N. Sandford

2001

The Foundation reaches 1,000 Donor Advised Funds.

is the first woman elected Chair of the Board and serves through 2000.

The first CFL Impact Capital loan closed in March 2014. The borrower was Jewish 2016: M a

ha ra d l e y ll B

Board Cha

Family & Career Center’s Navigate Enterprise Center. rs

The Foundation’s 24-hour online giving day, Give For Good Louisville,

lending to underfunded business owners such as

raised a record-breaking $6.8 million for local

differently-abled individuals and returning citizens.

nonprofits. Since its inception in 2014, the

Over $2.6 million has been invested since the

giving day has raised over $26.2 million

program began.

for more than 600 organizations.

2019

2020

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20-Present

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Pre

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sident &

2018

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2014

The purpose of the loan was to expand small business

its largest single gift worth $65 million.

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20

The Foundation received

Marshall Bradley is the

Surpassed $1 million in grants to strengthen

Ronald V. Gallo

first African American elected

the operations of local nonprofit organizations from the Fund

the President and CEO with more than

Chair of the Board.

for Louisville, an endowment that pools funds to respond to

30 years of experience in nonprofit

Louisville’s changing needs. In 2018, the Fund announced a

foundations and community building.

three-year commitment to strengthen organizations working in disinvested parts of our community, and awarded an additional $1.3 million in grants through 2020.

is selected as

GRANTEE SPOTLIGHTS Three grants, three organizations, and three women making changes in the community.

“ What are the things that we can do to change our lives and communities?�

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knowledge and principles of African cultures, with the belief that solutions rooted in heritage can be effectively sustainable.

“ One of those principles is of strong individual networks, sharing information, and resources at a personal level.

That’s where the Community Foundation of Louisville came in.”

STACEY BAILEY-NDIAYE alden fellowship

W

hen Stacy Bailey-Ndiaye sat at her computer in 2003, she saw a global network of strong communities forming in front of her. Young people from Senegal, South Africa, and the U.S. connected to honor the annual “Day of the African Child” by tackling challenges that reached across continents. It was vital to preserve that energy, to replicate it, to give it a lasting space so it could take root and positively impact communities year round.

That space became Bridge Kids International.

Bridge Kids International (BKI) is a global network working to bridge the gap between various African roots and the African Diaspora.

“It grew out of this work that we were doing… connecting young people in the United States with other young people in Africa, and trying to think about self determination. I had to keep asking myself: what are the things that we can do to change our lives and communities?” said Bailey-Ndiaye, Co-Founder and Director of BKI. The network identifies community challenges in education, the environment, girls’ rights, health, and economic development.

They then work toward solutions that are infused with the inherent

Stacey participated in the Community Foundation’s Alden Fellowship—a yearly cohort of five nonprofit leaders who develop plans for personal and professional growth. The Alden Fellowship was started

by William O. Alden, Jr., who wanted to give nonprofit leaders the chance to participate in world-class professional development programs so that they could become more effective leaders, thereby enabling their organizations to do more good work in our community. Fellows are awarded a cash grant and access to a network of peers working toward a better Louisville.

Through the Community Foundation, the BKI network extended a few steps more, as intended by the mission born from the virtual conference in 2003. The fellowship provided a much needed vote of confidence that helped solidify BKI’s seat at the table— for nonprofit funds and beyond.

“You talk about ecosystems, right?” said Bailey-Ndiaye, “Giving and creating space and opportunity for us to connect with each other, in real ways… it’s an investment in the person, and in the leader, with the notion that by supporting you, it’s going to change the city.” •

COMMUNITY FOUNDATION OF LOUISVILLE

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GRANTEE SPOTLIGHTS

“ I think the

community in general benefits when organizations like ours benefit,” Rippy says, “ because for every young person that completes the YouthBuild program, we are saving this community money.”

LYNN RIPPY impact capital

Y

outhBuild of Louisville engages youth in the community and provides intense job training in specific trades, guiding them towards a sense of purpose, confidence, productivity, and self-sufficiency. For several years, Lynn Rippy has been at the helm of this nonprofit based in the Smoketown neighborhood. “YouthBuild is an education and job training program for young people, aged 18 to 24,” says Rippy.

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“The thing that I think that is really special is allowing young people the opportunity to serve folks in the community. It allows them the ability to move forward and kind of launch into adulthood.”

YouthBuild partners with many agencies to help connect opportunities to youth.

But with the Community Foundation of Louisville, Rippy has found a partner that

helps support and encourage her nonprofit’s entire mission. “We worked with the Community Foundation to receive a CFL Impact Capital loan to expand our campus in a historically Black neighborhood. It was incredible to be able to receive some seed money to get that project going. I think the community in general benefits when organizations like ours benefit,” she says, “because for every young person that completes the YouthBuild program, we are saving this community money. The investment of YouthBuild money with our students is a ten to one return on investment.

So if you don’t look at anything but the financial ramifications of the work, it’s still nothing but positive for everyone.”

But the effects have touched her on a personal level more deeply. “As a 2017 Alden Fellow, this work and the support from the Community Foundation,” she says, “has given me an opportunity to do some of my own self-reflection and learning and to see all the things that are needed in the community. It’s a real validation that there’s someone in the community, like the Community Foundation staff, who has faith in you and your practice and are willing to make an investment in you personally, so that you can continue to build your skills.”

Because of this support, Rippy leads her nonprofit with great intention and passion, and she knows the Community Foundation is her ally in this goal. “It’s important for others in the community to know that the Community Foundation is truly intentional,” she says. “They help folks give in a creative way, and offer opportunities for us as nonprofits to be successful in ways that just wouldn’t happen otherwise.” •

“ It’s important for folks in the community to know that the Community Foundation is truly intentional,” Rippy says. “ They help folks give in a creative way, and offer opportunities for us as nonprofits to be successful in ways that just wouldn’t happen otherwise.”

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GRANTEE SPOTLIGHTS

KARINA BARILLAS give for good louisville

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f numbers could speak, they would tell the story of La Casita Center. Since participating in the Community Foundation of Louisville’s online giving day, Give For Good Louisville, La Casita has rapidly increased vital fundraising, donor support, and overall exposure in Louisville.

“The first year we raised $700,” said Karina Barillas, Founder and Executive Director of La Casita. “The following year, I believe we raised $7,000. Then the following year, I think, $13,000. In 2019, we raised $19,000… and we were in the top 10 for unique donations out of hundreds of nonprofits participating.”

Did You Know..

•

The Foundation has a committee dedicated to diversity, equity, and inclusion.

•

In its first year, 1984, the Foundation held six endowment funds totaling $1.1 million and awarded $107,000 in grants.

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The dollars raised through the Community Foundation’s giving day have allowed La Casita Center to amplify their human impact. These growing numbers mean an increased capacity for La Casita to support the mission of the organization, accompanying Latinx families through challenges big and small. That mission is to empower these families, providing a foundation for systemic change with long-term effects.

This looks like access to educational opportunities, legal advocacy, and safety for families in crisis in order to enhance the wellbeing of Louisville’s Latinx community.

Additional connections through the Community Foundation means that La Casita

can further integrate the resources and values of the Latinx community into the surrounding Louisville community.

With all of La Casita’s growth – in numbers served and impact made – Karina envisions a world in which organizations like La Casita are no longer needed. Point blank: “ I believe that our mission is to get rid of our jobs,” said Barillas.

“We nonprofits succeed because there is a need and there is a gap in services.

So I am dreaming that one day, maybe I won’t see it, maybe it won’t be in my lifetime, but one day we all are going to be out of a job and it’s going to be just a thriving community. And the Community Foundation—I think, and I believe with all my heart—is key for that dream to come true.” •

alden fellows Since the Alden Fellows’ inception in 2014, the Community Foundation has awarded $175,000 in grants to build the leadership capacity of 33 fellows.

These leaders join a network of past and present fellows, cultivating relationships and forming new connections in order to collaborate for greater impact. The Fellowship is made possible by the generosity and vision of Mr. William O. Alden, Jr. a Foundation donor.

give for good louisville Give For Good Louisville is the Community Foundation of Louisville’s 24-hour online giving day. The giving day unites community members to give to their favorite nonprofits during a local celebration of philanthropy.

impact capital Since 2014, Community Foundation of Louisville has made loans creating positive social impact alongside financial returns. Unlike grants, CFL Impact Capital investments are returned to the Foundation and then “recycled” back into the community. We invite individuals interested in creating deeper social impact to join the Foundation as loan participants through CFL Impact Capital.

vogt awards Since 1999, the Community Foundation of Louisville has proudly led the Vogt Invention & Innovation Awards (Vogt Awards) supporting early stage entrepreneurs and startups with non-dilutive grant awards and mentoring.

GENERATIONAL GIVING One of the oldest funds at the Community Foundation began decades ago demonstrating the ongoing legacy of funds that span across generations.

GENERATIONAL GIVING

ERIN ROUSE fundholder

E

rin Rouse looks after one of the oldest funds at the Community Foundation of Louisville. The fund, started by her aunt almost 30 years ago, carried on by her mother, and now run by her and her sister-in-law, Mary Jo Davis, Erin has seen firsthand the importance of generations dedicated to the mission of philanthropy.

“ The Community Foundation,” Erin says, “ is a source for good in the community, in the world around you.

I think that was why my aunt chose it in the beginning.”

Elizabeth (Betty) Thomas began her Donor Advised Fund in 1991 before passing away at the age of 93, when it was passed on to Erin’s mother, Maryann Cawthorne Davis. “The Community Foundation,” Erin says, “is a source for good in the community, in the world around you. I think that was why my aunt chose it in the beginning.

My aunt Betty was a really amazing lady. She was just a real gogetter, a very successful business woman in her own right.”

In the years since Erin’s own mother passed, she has taken over the fund with her sister-in-law, and has seen that “source for good” in the world more closely. “We can’t change it all, but we can help people, one at a time. We can help in our communities. We can help beginning on a small scale. And to me, that’s what community is all about. And that’s what the Community Foundation helps you do.” But she recognizes this doesn’t begin and end with her.

Now that she has taken a much more active role in the distribution of funds, she’s been able to reflect on the power of giving, and that giving is key, regardless of what you have to give.

“No matter how much you have, there’s always somebody who has less. That idea can change a person’s life. Then, that can change another person’s life, and that can change another. And suddenly, collectively, you can do big things. Our family believes that it’s up to us to teach our children and the next generation about giving, and about being generous, sharing what we have, serving, and helping other people. And so, this is a great way to help pass that baton on. Thankfully, the Community Foundation has all the resources to teach you how to do it.”

In the end, Erin Rouse attributes her knowledge and ability to give to the people that came before her. Generations of giving have shown impact not only in the community, but among Erin’s family.

It has become something that she has learned from those before her and something that she continues to teach her own children.

Most of that can be traced back to Aunt Betty, who started the fund so long ago. “Both my mother and my aunt had a lot of spunk – very, very capable and sharp. And I think my aunt would say today, ‘Of course, it’s made an impact. I didn’t expect any less.’ And we’d pat her on the back and we’d say, ‘You’re right, Aunt Betty.’” •

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“ We can help beginning on a small scale. And to me, that’s what community is all about.”

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GENERATIONAL GIVING

GORDON DABNEY, JR. fundholder

“M

y father was my hero,” Samuel Gordon Dabney, Jr. says of his father, the late Samuel Gordon Dabney. “He instilled in all of us, my two sisters and myself, both the sense of responsibility as well as the importance of philanthropy and charitable giving to support and give back to the community. That’s a big part of who he was, and it’s a big part of why I do what I do.”

It’s a responsibility Gordon Dabney, Jr. has instilled in his own daughters, aged 21 and 23, who he’s recently established as administrators of the Donor Advised Fund that they’ve established.

Did You Know..

•

1990 was the first year that total grants distributed by the Foundation endowment fundholders exceeded $1 million.

•

There is no minimum required to create a Charitable Checking Fund.

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In carrying on his father’s philanthropic legacy, Gordon has been able to lean on the Community Foundation of Louisville for support and guidance. Any question that arises, the Community Foundation provides answers. “Everybody that I’ve ever dealt with there, from setting up the first Charitable Checking Fund, to

converting it later to a Donor Advised Fund, and any and all questions in between have been enormously professional, helpful, and knowledgeable.

It’s the resource that I use more than anything else.”

When he reflects on the community he’s been a part of and sees the spirit of giving reflected in his daughters’ growing involvement in philanthropy, he’s encouraged. Not everyone may have the means to give substantially, but Gordon detects a common thread throughout humanity.

“ I honestly believe that everybody has, as part of their DNA, the desire to help and make a difference, to contribute, to give back.” •

impact growth

from 1984 to 2020

1984

1986

1988

The Foundation holds

ASSETS

TOTAL GRANTS

grew from

distributed by Foundation donors triples from

SIX ENDOWMENT FUNDS totaling $1.1M and awards $107,000 in grants

$1.6M

to

$6M

$7.6M

to

$18M

$$$$$$ 1992

TOTAL GRANTS

ASSETS IN PERMANENT ENDOWMENT FUNDS

distributed by Foundation endowment fundholders exceeds

$1M

incresases to

$35M

for the third consecutive year 01

03

02

2000

2001

The first

Area donors create

121 NEW FUNDS

MULTI-MILLION-DOLLAR

which increase the total number of charitable funds at the Foundation to

unrestricted endowment gift is made

$$$

1,000

2017

2019

2020

Alongside our donors, the Foundation made

ASSETS

The total grants distributed since inception from donor funds from the Foundation exceeds

9,500 GRANTS totalling

$73M

grow to

$656M with

$121M in new gifts

$1B!

Q&A WITH TURNEY BERRY Gaining perspective from the past 30 years.

“ It’s hard to find a part of the community that some fund of the Community Foundation hasn’t helped or, in many instances, started.”

“ Philanthropy, compassion, community mindedness. They are what, I think, distinguishes vibrant communities.”

TURNEY BERRY advisor Turney Berry has represented and has been counsel for the Community Foundation of Louisville for nearly 30 years. He has seen the Foundation grow and flourish over the course of three decades and consequently has a perspective of its success that dates back to the beginning.

Tell us about the origin of the Community Foundation of Louisville – what was the original mission?

What do you think they were envisioning for the future?

Community foundations, even in the 1980’s, really were created with the same sort of vision that I think, at least, they would have today, which is they really exist to inspire, encourage, and facilitate philanthropy. These old community foundations – Cleveland, New York – had a very top down view.

What donors around here want to do... we want to make our own decisions. And so what you find is, that if you facilitate people making their own decisions you will get a lot more philanthropy than you do

otherwise. It’s so encouraging. And then people want to do what their friends and neighbors are doing so their friends and neighbors are being philanthropic. And that’s where philanthropy really gets rolling.

The cause is the key thing. And that’s what a community foundation is great for, because it’s raising money. Who’s going to lead, who’s going to inspire, if it’s not the Community Foundation?

It’s reminding you that your causes – the causes you see around you, the causes of your friends and neighbors – that’s what’s important. That’s why we’re here.

What sort of impact can a single individual make?

Do you find Louisville to be a community that cares?

I do. It’s interesting. I think that you have to work on it. You’ve got to have leadership. I don’t think it’s really true that one generation is more philanthropic than another. Part of it’s timing, but a lot of it is what do they want to do? How do they want to do it? At the end of the day, you can say, the groups that are helping are imperfect. Yeah, they are imperfect.

Everything else is imperfect. So what?

It all starts with individuals. Any amount of good is still good. But, even more than that, individuals have the ability to influence other individuals.

That’s why generational giving creates such a large impact. Grandparents, and parents, and children come together and pool funds to do things over generations. It always starts with one person – you never know where your influence begins and ends.

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Q&A WITH TURNEY BERRY

“ The

Community Foundation is encouraging families: grandparents, parents, and children to come together and pool funds to do things over generations.”

Did You Know..

•

85% of grants we distribute stay in Kentucky.

•

Ten thousand individual grant checks are sent from donor funds each year.

•

2001 was the first year the number of charitable funds surpassed 1,000. Today there are over 1,800.

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What would be missing from Louisville, in the philanthropic fabric of this community, if the Community Foundation here did not exist?

It’s hard to find a part of the community that some fund of the Community Foundation hasn’t helped or, in many instances, started. Probably a third of my work now is philanthropic, helping donors with their charitable giving, or helping the Community Foundation.

It’s huge.

conscious decision. Maybe we all do that, individually, truthfully. It’s not hard to get people to go to press conferences. It’s not hard to round up people to help with projects that have immediate rewards. What’s hard is helping other people do what they want to do and thinking about creating partnerships and collaborations.

That’s hard, and it requires dedication.

You do all of that for the long term: build up the Foundation to build up the community for the long term.

“ What’s hard is helping other people do what they want to do, as opposed to trying to get them to do what you want them to do.”

Do you think, at the heart, there’s a sense of wanting to make a lasting impact?

Why is the Foundation important to the growth and health of the community?

I think the answer is yes. Sometimes people think what that means is folks are looking to build themselves up with their legacy but I think most of the time it’s folks that say they’ve been blessed, and they think, “I’ve been very fortunate or very lucky. I want to put some of those chips back on the table. I’m going to leave them in the pot for somebody else to take who needs it more than my family does.”

Philanthropically-minded, communityminded people make our community better. The mayor talks about compassion. I think that’s just another way to say the same thing. Philanthropy, compassion, community-mindedness: they are what, I think, distinguishes vibrant communities that really have a lot to offer from an economic mill, or a self-satisfied place, truthfully. •

You mentioned trends there. How do you see the Community Foundation adjusting to those philanthropic trends and innovating?

I have a view that all groups, if you don’t watch, will tend to shy away from what’s hard and shift to what’s a little easier. They don’t really notice that they’re doing that. They don’t make a

A LETTER FROM THE CEO

The story of the Community Foundation of Louisville continues to grow - from the many donors who believed in community philanthropy decades ago, to those who share their inspiring stories in these pages, and to countless others who are dedicated to making an impact in our community through charitable giving.

It is my fervent desire and responsibility to honor the excellence and integrity of the Foundation’s past and to lead us forward in a collaborative way by developing clear aspirations for the future, engaging directly with our donors and our community, and advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion. I believe that working together in a myriad of ways towards resilience is key to the best collective future of our community – resilience created from true inclusion, where all residents feel connected to and thus have a stake in their community. When a community foundation provides a vision of hope, engagement, and opportunity, it unlocks potential and energy that is core to driving change.

RONALD V. GALLO, ED. D.

president & ceo

cfl ouisvil le.org