Please join the Board of Directors and Corporators at the 2014 Annual Meeting & Celebration, to be held at 6pm on Thursday, May 22, at the Guilford Yacht Club. Contact Liza Janssen Petra, Executive Director, at lizapetra@gmail.com to secure your seats or if you have any questions.
Admission is $75 / $100 per person.
Live music by Dr. Joe & Friends.
Please RSVP by May 14.
Thank you to our sponsors!
Murtha Cullina
The Bilco Company
Frank’s Package Store
The Board of Directors recently approved three grants, of nine received, from our March 1, 2014, deadline submissions. Because the Guilford Foundation has decided to focus the majority of our grant making this year on housing concerns in Guilford, we were faced with the difficult situation of being unable to fund several worthy requests.
We are pleased to report, however, that two of the grants responded in some way to the need for housing opportunities for young adults, seniors, and families with low or moderate income: requests from the Women & Family Life Center and Lifelinx each addressed the issue in some way. Our third grant supports the once-in-a-lifetime celebration of Guilford’s 375th Anniversary.
Bishop’s Orchards Farm Market & Winery recently provided the Guilford Foundation with a $8,460.28 check to support a new permanent legacy fund: The Lee Family Fund to Support the Guilford Community Fund. This donation reflects the results of a fund drive held in November 2013 that encouraged shoppers to give a tax-deductible donation at check out. Bishop’s also encouraged employees to donate, and, in the end, matched all donations.
The Guilford Community Fund Endowment is being established through the generosity of Bill and Kate Lee and their family, who are longtime supporters of both the Guilford Foundation and the Guilford Community Fund. The Lees have offered up to $25,000 to this effort if the community can match it.
During the month of November, Bishop’s Orchards Farm Market & Winery will provide an opportunity to support the Guilford community when you check out. After shoppers have loaded up on supplies of native fruits, vegetables and other goodies, they will have the option to make a tax-deductible donation to a new legacy endowment for the Guilford Community Fund. And, to sweeten the pot, Bishop’s will match each donation made at the register during the month—dollar for dollar!
“We, the Bishop Family, are pleased to be able to help support this legacy that is being created, both as a family and a local business,” says Sarah Bishop DellaVentura. “We are proud to be a part of this community and to give back what we can. We believe that our customers can help us to rise to the challenge to help raise funds for this endowment and feel good knowing that they are giving back to the community themselves too!”
The donations will support a new permanent legacy fund at the Guilford Foundation, whose proceeds will support the annual fund drive of the Guilford Community Fund. The Guilford Community Fund Endowment is being established through the generosity of Bill and Kate Lee and their family, who are longtime supporters of both the Guilford Foundation and the Guilford Community Fund. The Lees have offered up to $25,000 for this effort if the community—including the Bishop’s challenge—can match it. This means a dollar given at the register Bishop’s will be quadrupled ($1 at register will be matched by $1 from Bishops, totaling $2, which will be matched by the Lees for a total of $4 for the Fund).
The income from the Guilford Community Fund Endowment will provide a source of permanent support for the Community Fund’s Annual Appeal, which raises and distributes over $120,000 each year to non-profit organizations best qualified to serve Guilford residents in need. These funds are critical to the ability of these organizations to address needs in Guilford, from services for intellectual disabilities to outdoor education to housing to women in transition to mental health services to Meals on Wheels and the Food Bank.
“Two things thrill me about this giving opportunity,” states Lydia Forgetta-Sheffield, President, Guilford Community Fund. “One is that you will be given the chance to double the value of your gift and share it with the members of our Guilford community. And the other is that you will be part of the legacy! You never know when you may need the assistance of one of our 22 agencies! Thank you to the Lees and the Bishops for this chance to start the endowment. Come, give, and share this November.”
The mission of the Guilford Foundation is to connect people who care with the causes that matter to them to enrich the quality of life in Guilford; now and for generations to come. Tom Pinchbeck, President of the Guilford Foundation Board of Directors notes: “We are delighted to help connect the Lee Family with a cause that matters to them, and to all of us: the annual fund drive of the Community Fund. To have the Bishops family join this effort demonstrates, once again, the power of collaboration and the strength of the Guilford community.”
Building community foundations takes time, and it takes support from many areas. But the long term impacts are tremendous: we are a permanent and growing source of income to invest in the Guilford Community; a permanent vehicle for local philanthropy; and an independent community leader.
We are so grateful for the response to our recent appeal for operating support. As of today, supporters have donated $14,930, not including the $10,000 challenge gift from an anonymous donor. This means we can continue our efforts to build the capital we need to meet the needs of local nonprofits.
Last year, the Guilford Foundation granted nearly $70,000 to organizations serving Guilford– a 30% increase from 2010. And while numbers are important, our assistance to the community goes beyond grant making to leading special projects (such as fuel assistance and housing) and partnering with funders, businesses and others to leverage support.
We are growing, moving forward, and doing a better job meeting the needs in the community. We would be unable to do so without your support. Thank you for joining us in our journey to build Guilford’s Foundation.
The Guilford Foundation hosted its Annual Dinner & Awards Ceremony on Thursday, May 30th, under clear, warm skies at the Guilford Yacht Club. At the dinner, we awarded scholarships to nine Guilford High School graduating seniors to help offset the costs of their college education. The records of these remarkable students reflect their hard work and commitment to personal development and inspire hope in the future citizenry or our great town.
GHS Scholarship Recipients
The nine students (as well as their colleges) are listed below next to their award: … Read more
We’ve been delighted to have some of our recent initiatives and work highlighted in local and regional news media. Here is a listing of some of the recent articles:
Representatives from W&FL and TGF sign agreement for new agency endowment.
Part of The Guilford Foundation’s mission is to ensure that the quality of life in Guilford remains strong and vibrant, which means supporting those organizations that make a difference in the everyday lives of our citizens. To that end, TGF was pleased to work with the Women & Family Life Center (W&FL) to establish our first Agency Endowment, a permanent legacy fund that creates annual income for W&FL in perpetuity.
The Guilford Fund for Education and the Guilford Foundation awarded a grant of $2,450 in March 2013 to Guilford Art Center and Guilford Before and After School Care for a joint project to provide art instruction to After School Care students onsite at A.W. Cox, Calvin Leete, and Guilford Lakes schools in Guilford.