Community Foundation of Tompkins County

Philanthropy Magnified
June 2015
A Message from our CEO, George Ferrari
CEO George Ferrari

We distributed our special 15th anniversary report last month at our annual meeting. This month, many of you can look forward to receiving your copy in the mail. A special feature of this report is the timeline on pages 3-4, which reflects on 15 years of philanthropic achievements. Over the next few months, I would like to share with you milestones along the way so that we can honor our founders and learn from our past as we plan for the future. You will learn of grants and assets, governance, funds, donors, and community philanthropy education. The first five milestones are mostly from 2000, the year of our founding.

  • 1997 Dan Mansoor shares a white paper with select community leaders on the idea of starting a community foundation for Tompkins County
  • Early 2000, Conversations launched among community leaders about starting a community foundation
  • April 1, 2000 Incorporating Board member Howard Hartnett signs agreement to create the first Donor Advised Fund
  • May 4, 2000, Community Foundation of Tompkins County is incorporated in New York State
  • July 2000, the IRS classifies Community Foundation as a public charity under section 501 (c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code

Next month we revisit 2001 and remember our very first grants in arts & culture, community building, education, environment, and health & human services.

 

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

Sharing Philanthropic Values in Families 
By Nancy Massicci, Chief Development Officer

young-picnic-fam.jpg

"I want to teach philanthropy to my kids."

 

I recently spoke with a donor advisor about his gifts to a scholarship fund created in memory of a family member. He comes from a family that has already spent 67 years in K-12 public school careers. His father was a teacher and principal and his brother is a teacher.

 

"You can't go anywhere in this town without someone saying they know my father or brother and they are great leaders and teachers."

 

The donor established a fund with proceeds from his father's estate to provide scholarships for local high school students in honor of his late father.

 

"There's no need to convince me of the value of using a community foundation. And the fantastic staff helped get us to this point."

 

He shared that his kids - two young adults and one in high school - are getting educated more deeply about the benefits of giving, including meeting new people, which opens doors. He thinks the crown jewel of this experience is siblings connections, building bridges to get along better and to make mutual decisions.

 

"Each year we get together for our family reunion and it's connecting them to each other. We love it!"

 

More donors stories can be found on our website.

Our Newest Fund: Hospicare Fund
By Amy LeViere, Donor Services Officer

We are pleased to announce our newest fund: Hospicare Fund.

 

As a permanently endowed designated fund, gifts to this fund will support Hospicare's mission, in perpetuity, to bring medical expertise and compassionate, respectful care to people and their loved ones at any stage of a life-threatening illness, and to provide information and education about advanced illness, dying, and bereavement to the entire community.

 

Hospicare  

 

When you support the mission of Hospicare, you help give terminally ill people the opportunity to spend the end of their lives peacefully, meaningfully, and without pain. Securing the future of Hospicare and Palliative Care Services is a way to make an important contribution to our community. You may also honor the memory of your loved ones while helping others.

 

For more information about funds held at the Community Foundation, visit our website.


Youth Farm Project Takes Root

By Janet Cotraccia, Program Officer

 

Youth Farm Project  

 

How does getting your hands dirty lead to our youth building a more just community? Take a look at the Youth Farm Project and how it uses agriculture to empower a diverse group of young people to become leaders. The Youth Farm Project is in its sixth season, growing produce on a 10 acre farm on Nelson Road. The YFP program uses agriculture as a tool for teaching sustainable methods of growing food, the impact of our current food system on health and the environment, and also its impact on social justice issues concerning unequal access to healthy food. The program empowers a diverse group of young people by teaching communication skills, carrying out a strong mentoring model, following an established curriculum with evaluations, and, of course, growing produce. YFP has become a cornerstone employment placement for area youth from all backgrounds and neighborahoods within our community. Additional funds to this program, whose fiscal sponsor is Social Ventures, will provide youth employment for more youth in Tompkins County.

 

And it gets better; the program receives some of its revenue by selling some of its 11,500 lbs. of produce to the Full Plate Farm Collective CSA, BJM Elementary School's Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Snack Program, GIAC, the Ithaca City School District Lunch Program, the LACS lunch program, and the Congo Square Market (Friday evenings in the summer, Southside Community Center). YFP collaborates with over 25 programs in all, a substantial outreach in Tompkins County.

 

            The Community Foundation celebrates its support of this program through multiple grants from a range of funds: Kathy Yoselson Fierce Determination Fund, Rothman and Alford Fund, the Women's Fund, Blecher Schaffzin Family Fund, John Semmler Fund, Community Enrichment Fund, the Howland Foundation Fund, and the Lane Family Fund in our 2015 Spring Grant Cycle.

In Ferguson, a Gift to Heal Divisions

Credit: Rebecca Koenig, Chronicle of Philanthropy

The news was grim. Michael Brown, a black teenager, was dead, shot by a white police officer on an August afternoon in a St. Louis suburb. The details of the shooting were disputed, but one fact was clear: something was wrong in Ferguson, Missouri.

That was enough to compel one couple to act. Having lived in a nearby town for five decades, the white, married pair didn't know what Ferguson needed, but they figured the town's inhabitants - black and white - might.

 

So they called the Greater Saint Louis Community Foundation with an offer: a $100,000 donation to create a fund that would be distributed by a group of black and white residents. The fund's name reflected the donors' simple hope: Come Together Ferguson.

"We wish there was some way we could get that community communicating across lines and neighborhoods and ages and races; that was the vague idea we had," said one of the donors, who both wish to remain anonymous. "We think there's going to be a period of healing in that community, and we really wanted to support that."

 

A Night on the Town Broadway Extravaganza

George Ferrari and Baruch Whitehead  

Our fabulous board member, Baruch Whitehead!

 

Thank you for generously giving of your time, talents, and treasure to our community!

 

A Night on the Town

Broadway Extravaganza

 

What an exciting night we had on June 6th at Ford Hall up on the beautiful campus of Ithaca College.

 

Thank you for making it a special evening as we celebrate 15 years of philanthropic excellence. From the full sound of an orchestra, to the many voices of the choir from community choruses, to our soloists, Mark Lawrence, Sally Ramirez, Geoff Peterson, Michelle Peterson, and Brett Pond, and our fabulous choral director, Baruch Whitehead, this concert showcased Broadway at its finest.

 

Last year the Community Foundation granted $389,000 to arts and cultural organizations. This is a key element of our work. Whether singers, musicians, painters, poets, or authors, each has improved our quality of life here in Tompkins County. We have granted to libraries, choruses, museums, instrumental ensembles, theaters, and more. We continue to support the many arts organizations and cultural jewels that enrich our lives and help create stronger community connections.

 

Please view our photo gallery from the evening.
In This Issue
News and Events
2015 Philanthropy Learning Exchanges
(continuing education credits available pending content approval)
Using Charitable Assets in a Socially Responsible Way
Financial Planning 101 for Young Professionals
  • Sept. 22, 2015
  • 12pm for professional advisors
  • 5pm for donors
15th Anniversary Events
  • November 7, 2015
  • Saturday evening
  • Celebrations
    2331 Slaterville Rd
    Ithaca, NY 14850 
Who We Are
2014 Annual Report

Click here to view our latest report,
Creating Community Connections.
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.
New Board Member Spotlight: Kevin Shreve
Kevin Shreve
Kevin Shreve
Development & Community Relations Committee

Kevin began his career in financial services in June of 1978, and has been a Financial Consultant for 30 years. He joined AXA Advisors in 1985, and began doing business as Financial Designs in 1990. Kevin attended King's College, Wilkes-Barre, PA as an engineering major in the early 70s. He received his CLU and ChFC designations from The American College, Bryn Mawr, PA in 1984. He is past president of the Ithaca, NY chapter of National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors, and is currently their Treasurer. Kevin is a Life and Qualifying member of the Million Dollar Round Table (MDRT), an international association of leading financial professionals, recognized as the standard of excellence in the life insurance-based financial services industry. 

Kevin has enjoyed a long history of community involvement and charitable giving in the Ithaca area. His prior board service includes the Franzska Racker Centers, The Country Club of Ithaca, The Community Dispute and Resolution Center, and Tompkins County Youth Board where he received the Governor's Voluntary Service Award. His hobbies include Hunting, Golf, Racquetball, Bridge, Gourmet Cooking, and Gardening. 
Meet the Board and Staff
 

Board of Directors

 

Chair

Alan Mathios

 

Vice Chair

Randy Ehrenberg

 

Secretary

Sandra Dhimitri

 

Treasurer

Diane McDonough

 

Immediate Past Chair

Robin Masson

 

Richard Banks

Mary Berens

Susan Brown

Tom Colbert

Fabina Colon

Ross Feldman

Marcie Finlay

Sara Knobel

Robin Masson

Philip McPheron

Alice Moore

Bill Murphy

Susan Murphy

Stephen Pope

Ron Poole

Nancy Potter

Kevin Shreve

Carol Travis

Lucia Tyler

Baruch Whitehead

Stephanie Wiles

 

Incorporating Board

Jeff Furman

Howard Hartnett

Bill Myers

John Semmler

Diane Shafer

Robert Swieringa

 

Staff

Click on a name to send an email.

  

Chief Executive Officer

George Ferrari, Jr.

 

Chief Development Officer

Nancy Massicci

 

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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