A Busy End of the Year for TCF- THANKS STAFF!

December is a busy time for us at TCF, which is good- it means that the pace picks up- more grants, hopefully more gifts, and all of our systems are tested. For some it may mean lots of time off, but for us, it means we have to figure out WHEN we can take time off and be with loved ones, so that we can cover all of our bases here.

It's also a time to reflect on the year that has gone by. And what a year it's been. Economic turmoil. Changes. Our 25th Anniversary. Triangle Gives Back. So much more... As President of the Foundation, I try to give credit where credit is due, and I'm lucky and grateful for the Board of Directors that guide this institution, the fundholders, our nonprofit partners and many others- but today, I'd like to publicly thank our staff. You all know them well. You work with them, interact with them, collaborate and engage them in your work. They a dedicated, focused and enthusiastic group of professionals who make this one of the best places to work in the Triangle. THANK YOU EVERYONE FOR WORKING TIL THE CLOCK RUNS OUT ON 2009.

And working hard we are.. Let me tell you more..

The past few weeks have been busy in terms of grants. Last week, we sent out approximately $450,000 in 124 separate grants, the week before it was $508,000 in 93 grants.

This week, we are starting to send out our grants to the Fall 2009 Community Grantmaking Program grantees, which include a great group of nonprofits.

In the Youth Leadership & Development Category, the following organizations are awarded grants for this cycle:

• Girls on the Run of the Triangle
• Mallarme Chamber Players
• Orange County Rape Crisis Center
• Read and Feed
• Voices Together
• Community Music School
• Visual Art Exchange
• Future Black and Brown Inventors and Innovators
  
  And in the Civic Engagement Category, we are awarding grants to:
• Wake UP Wake County
• Covenant with NC's Children Education Fund
• NC Center for Public Policy Research
• NC Conservation Network
• Equality NC
• NARAL Pro-Choice NC Foundation

In sum, we've done approximately $1.4 million in grants since December 1st, which doesn't include this week. We expect to close out the month hitting close to $2M. That's an impressive number and we are grateful for the support of donor fundholders for helping us reach that mark.

Looking at the different organizations that these funds support, it's good to see that the Foundation is continuing to fund a variety of important causes and agencies, from basic human needs (grants to the Food Bank, Genesis Home, and Habitat Wake County, for example) to education and youth development (Durham Nativity School, SEEDS) to the arts (NC Symphony, WUNC, Kidzu).

Of course, to sustain this grantmaking, we must continue to receive gifts and funds. We've had a busy month on that front, too. But, not as good as other months. We are not immune to the recession, as Fred likes to say. We have received some estate gifts, stocks, and our own Chair, Phail Wynn has created a Fund. Thanks Mr. Chair.

No wonder we are tired, and vacation is coming.. but not quite yet...

Thanks for reading.

A $370,000 day

Being strategic in philanthropy is something that we talk and think a lot about, but as a community foundation, we don't always measure up..





But this past week, as we once again partnered with our friends at GlaxoSmithKline, I certainly felt that we were making a difference- as the First Annual Impact Awardees were recognized.





Now, these are NOT grants. But awards. Awards for good work done in increasing access to health care. Certainly a big need in our region. Nine organizations received awards of $40,000 each, plus a marketing package with photos and more.

Mary Linda Andrews of GSK with Lori O'Keefe

Each of these groups are an inspiration. They are doing sometimes cutting edge, sometimes back-breaking, often tedious work in connecting people to service providers. For example, one of the nonprofits, Alliance Medical Ministries, which is headed by our friend Sean Harrison, can see a patient for a primary care visit for $98 versus what it would cost that patient to be seen at an Emergency Department for over $1300. Doesn't that make sense? Patients pay whatever they can afford. Another, the Lucy Daniels center, sees over 600 kids severe emotional challenges as well as those for regular services, with a staff of only 26. Twenty-six! It has received a number of awards for its model. These organizations have a lot to teach us, and the hope is that these awards will bring them more recognition, and MORE needed funding and attention.





Congratulations to each. And THANK YOU:

• Alliance Medical Ministry


• The Alliance of AIDS Services- Carolina


• Diabetes Management Solutions


• Family Violence & Rape Crisis Services, Inc


• Lucy Daniels Center for Early Childhood


• National Society to Prevent Blindness- NC


• Threshold


• Urban Ministries of Wake County


• Wake Teen Medical Services

It was a good day. A special thank you to Sandra Rodriguez, who really did all the work for us at TCF on this.