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Philanthropy Magnified
August 2014

A Message from our CEO, George Ferrari
George Ferrari

Your Community Foundation has launched a special mini-grant opportunity in partnership with the Park Foundation. For quite some time now local leaders and nonprofit professionals have been exploring a new way to make lasting change in big issues by tackling problems on a systemic level. This approach, termed collective impact, includes a common agenda, shared measurement, mutually reinforcing activities, and continuous communication, all coordinated by a backbone organization. To promote planning and research into this approach, we are offering the Collective Impact Summit Mini-Grant Cycle (deadline of August 27), which will support the participation of at least two individuals from Tompkins County in the Collective Impact Summit at the Tamarack Institute from October 6-10, 2014 in Toronto. This grant cycle will support Tompkins County-based collective impact workers to address pressing social issues in a systemic approach.

 

Support for this grant cycle comes from the Park Foundation and the Community Foundation's Collective Impact Field of Interest Fund. Donors interested in supporting this initiative should contact us.

 

Click here to register for a Question & Answer session offered on Tuesday, August 20, 2014 from 10-11am at the Community Foundation.

 

As always, keep connected by visiting our website at www.cftompkins.org

A turning of pages...

Giving a gift in memory or in honor of a special individual in one's life carries so many emotions and feelings along with it. As I met in the home of one of our donors, Carol Franco, I was privileged to hear some of those stories. Making a gift to the Lansing Community Library Endowment Fund in memory of her husband, Angelo "Ang" Franco, connected honoring and supporting the current volunteer work of their daughter, Emily, with their own love of books and libraries. "Look around, there are a ton of books", Carol said, "We are bookworms." "You can enter all kinds of worlds and just grow." We talked of travel, birds, books, and times past. As they raised their family, it was Angelo who took the children to the library. Books and travel were always a part of their family's lives. "When you are young, you begin a love affair with books, and it carries you through your whole life."

 

Thank you to the Franco Family and to the many other generous donors who support and strengthen our community resources through gifts made to the Community Foundation.

James Potorti Gorge Walks

When was the last time you drank in the full beauty of our regional gorges? The James Potorti interpretive gorge walks occur every August and are led by educators of the Museum of the Earth. There are three more Friday morning opportunities to join in these scenic delicacies: Aug. 15 at Taughannock Falls State Park, Aug. 22 at Buttermilk Falls State Park and Aug. 29 at the Cayuga Nature Center (Denison Falls) from 10-11:30am. These walks are supported by the Museum of the Earth at PRI Fund of the Community Foundation. This support came from Nikki Stern, the widow of James Potorti, victim of the WTC bombings on Sept. 11, 2001. As an Ithaca native, James spent countless hours walking through the local Finger Lakes gorges. Please visit the website for more information about the walks.

Philanthropy's Fatal Flaw
Title: Philanthropy's 'Fatal' Flaws and How Community Funds Can Help
Date: July 30, 2014
Credit: Hildy Gottlieb, Chronicle of Philanthropy
Click the big green play button to listen to this podcast from the Chronicle of Philanthropy:

In this episode of Making Change, Brian Byrnes discusses his views on social change and and his criticism of the sector on the eve of his transition out of traditional philanthropy as the president of the Santa Fe Community Foundation to become a full-time zen practitioner.

 

While philanthropy is valuable for many reasons, there are deep, fundamental flaws in the way it is practiced, says Mr. Byrnes, including an environment of competition instead of collaboration, and the plutocracy of philanthropy.

Community foundations should lead the change in how philanthropy is practiced, says Mr. Byrnes, by promoting a culture of reflection at the executive and board levels, and experimenting with ways of democratizing philanthropy.

GrantStation Access
The Community Foundation now has access to GrantStation and we would like to share it with you!

GrantStation is a tool for non-profits, educational institutions, and government agencies that helps these groups find both private and federal grantmakers in their local area, for a specific area of interest, or for a specific project.

GrantStation is very user-friendly and operates using both simple and advanced search features. As a grant seeker, you can simply search within an area of interest or for a specific keyword, or do a more intricate search and find exactly what you are seeking.

There are also many resources provided by GrantStation to aid in the grant seeking process. GrantStation is divided into four sections: Search, Write, Learn, and Read. Each of these sections will help you in different ways and guide you toward writing better grants to the right people.

To give GrantStation a try in our offices or to conduct more thorough research, reserve a one-hour GrantStation time slot by contacting our Administrative Assistant, Matthew Fisher:

(607) 272-9333
New Office Wishlist
We have office furniture donated by the Park Foundation and office architecture and painting donated pro bono by Flatfield Designs, Daniel Hirtler, Registered Architect, but we are still looking for the following things to help make our office complete:
  • LCD Smart projector
  • 5 new large screen monitors
  • office refrigerator
  • office microwave
  • Keurig beverage maker
  • support for local artwork
  • Annual Report display rack
In This Issue
News and Events
Q & A Session for Collective Impact Summit Grant
  • Aug. 20, 2014
  • 10am - 11am
  • Community Foundation
    200 E. Buffalo St., Suite 202
  • Click here to register
Philanthtopy Learning Exchange: Investing in Your Community Through Education: What Makes Us Unique
  • Sept. 15, 2014
  • 5pm - 7pm
  • 4pm for donors
  • Borg Warner Rm.
    Tompkins County Public Library
    101 E. Green St.
    Ithaca, NY 14850
  • Click here to register

Financial Counseling 

5 Years Pre and 5 Years Post Retirement 

with Rick Prybyl of Morgan Stanley

  • Oct. 21, 2014
  • 5pm for professional advisors
  • 4pm for donors
Women's Fund Fall Gathering
  • Nov. 6, 2014
  • 4:30pm - 6:30pm
  • 4:30: social time
  • 5:00 sharp: program starts
  • Cinemapolis
    120 E. Green St.Ithaca, NY 14850
Who We Are
2013 Annual Report

Click here to view our latest report,
Learning to Give, Giving to Learn.
What Are Community Foundations?

Community Foundations are not-for-profit organizations founded and staffed by people who are dedicated to seeking out what is needed in our community and what is valuable about Tompkins County and to helping those valuable assets grow important results. We understand our community's needs and help you to turn your charitable passions into results-oriented philanthropy. We show donors how to make gifts go further and accomplish more.

Meet the Board and Staff

Board Chair

Robin Masson

 

Vice Board Chair

Alan Mathios

  

Secretary

Mary Berens

 

Treasurer

Diane McDonough

 

Members

Richard Banks

Susan Brown

Tom Colbert

Paula Davis

Sandra Dhimitri

Randy Ehrenberg

Ross Feldman

Marcie Finlay

Bob Jewell

Sara Knobel

Tim Little

Phil McPheron

Bill Murphy

Nancy Potter

David Squires

Carol Travis

Lucia Tyler

Linda Wagenet

Julie Waters

Baruch Whitehead

Stephanie Wiles

 

Incorporating Board

Jeff Furman

Howard Hartnett

Bill Myers

Robert Swieringa

John Semmler

Diane Shafer

 

Staff

Click on a name to send an email.

  

Chief Executive Officer

George Ferrari, Jr.

 

Program Officer

Janet Cotraccia

 

Donor Services Officer

Amy LeViere

 

Administrative Assistant

Matthew Fisher

Community Foundation of Tompkins County | (607) 272-9333 | info@cftompkins.org | http://www.cftompkins.org
200 E. Buffalo St.
Suite 202
Ithaca, NY 14850

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