Impact Stories

Growing Philanthropy

Introducing Michael Barret Jones, the Community Foundation's new Chief Philanthropy Officer

January 10, 2023

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The Community Foundation for Northern Virginia welcomes Michael Barret Jones as its new Chief Philanthropy Officer. In this role, he will lead the organization’s growth over the coming years in alignment with its new five-year strategic plan, helping to build a community that works for everyone in our region by bolstering the Community Foundation’s long-term fundraising and development strategies utilizing his wealth of experience in philanthropic engagement at the highest level.

“We are thrilled to have Michael on board at the Community Foundation,” said Eileen Ellsworth, President and CEO of the Community Foundation for Northern Virginia. “He has decades of experience engaging donors in both responsive grantmaking, and community problem solving. That experience has given him a unique perspective on what works and what doesn’t work and has honed a very strategic approach to philanthropic giving.”

A Message from President and CEO Eileen Ellsworth on the 2022 Raise the Region Gala

October 11, 2022

Dear Community Foundation Friends and Supporters,

Last Friday evening, we gathered for the first time in 3 years to celebrate our region’s resilience, success, and growing sense of home and place. As always, your support literally helped Raise the Region!

More than 500 guests joined us in person and another 100 tuned in to the virtual live stream. It was an incredibly heartening reunion and opportunity to celebrate the ties that bind us all together. Your support and generosity were unprecedented. The event raised a total of $650,000, which will help the Community Foundation build a community that works for everyone.

Sponsor's Voice: Peraton's Theory of Building Community

September 28, 2022

Corporate and individual sponsorships are a critical tool for the Community Foundation to lead and convene the community. One of our 2022 Raise the Region Gala sponsors is Peraton, a tech and cybersecurity firm based in Herndon, Virginia. Peraton have experienced a meteoric rise since their founding in 2017, and were expected to be worth $5 billion dollars in 2021. We spoke with Stefanie Hale, Corporate Citizenship lead, about what community building means to Peraton.

Community Foundation Hosts First-Ever Virtual Gala

October 7, 2020

The Community Foundation for Northern Virginia hosted its first virtual Raise the Region Gala on Friday, October 2, 2020. Business, philanthropic, and community leaders joined us from their own homes across the region and the nation to take part in this live-streamed event.

Hosted by NBC4’s Leon Harris, 2020 Raise the Region gala is an annual mission-critical fundraiser that enables the Community Foundation to respond to need, seed innovation, and lead and convene the community. The theme for this year’s event was Building a Community that Works for Everyone.

PUBLIC ART INSTALLATION EXPLORES HISTORY BURIED BENEATH A NAME IN ARLINGTON, VIRGINIA PRESENTING THE WORK OF LYNDA ANDREWS-BARRY

August 20, 2020

Arlington Arts Center (AAC) and the Community Foundation for Northern Virginia are pleased to present Passage, a site-specific public artwork by artist Lynda Andrews-Barry. The work will be featured on AAC’s lawn at 3550 Wilson Boulevard in Arlington from August 22 through December 13, 2020.

Passageis the result of a unique partnership between AAC and the Community Foundation. The work was funded by the Foundation’s Ross-Roberts Fund for the Arts and is undertaken in cooperation with Arlington Public Art. Passage will include 26 large-scale sculptures created from driftwood, rebar, metal hardware, and canvas sails—designed to evoke the ships that transported more than 12 million kidnapped and enslaved Africans across the Atlantic Ocean between the 16th and 19th centuries.

Local Teen Donates Over $3,000 from GoFundMe to Coronavirus Relief Effort

August 11, 2020

"I'm just really happy that I'm able to make a difference and want to show that Asian Americans are with health care workers and we want to unite," Sebastian Lu says

Sebastian Lu, a 17-year-old pianist in Fairfax, Virginia, who despite having his junior interrupted by COVID-19, decided not to sit on the sidelines, but was motivated to help others impacted by the pandemic by launching a GoFundMe campaign.

Build Back Better After COVID-19

July 20, 2020

The COVID-19 pandemic has pulled back the curtain and exposed longstanding structural and systemic inequities that exist in communities of color across our nation. From the education system to the labor market, to housing, health, and economic stability the coronavirus has had a disproportionate impact on African American and Latino communities.

The Community Foundation for Northern Virginia recently hosted a virtual Town Hall – Build Back – Dream Forward where local leaders representing business, education, economic development, and philanthropy gathered to raise awareness around the uneven playing field that pre-existed COVID-19 and potential paths forward for greater equity in our economic systems.

Community Foundation COVID-19 Response Fund Announces A New Round of Grants, Totaling $440,000

June 30, 2020

The Community Foundation for Northern Virginia announced today it has awarded $440,000 in its fifth round of COVID-19 Response Fund Grants to 22 local organizations providing relief and services to communities in the region disproportionately impacted by the coronavirus pandemic, including vulnerable and disadvantaged communities.

GIVING CIRCLE OF HOPE ANNOUNCES 2019 GRANT AWARD RECIPIENTS

May 27, 2020

(Reston, VA) - For the 16th consecutive year, the Community Foundation for Northern Virginia's Giving Circle of HOPE(GCH) evaluated and is awarding grants to eight nonprofits that are serving the needs of families in Northern Virginia. The GCH reviewed 31 grant requests and, through the power of collective giving, will award $56,000 this year--with over $1.25 million over its history--to further the aims of nonprofits working to improve the lives of those in our community.

Round Four Grants from the COVID-19 Response Fund for Northern Virginia Offer Direct Financial Assistance to Families and Individuals

May 26, 2020

The Community Foundation for Northern Virginia is pleased to announce the Round 4 grantees from the COVID-19 Response Fund for Northern Virginia.

So many individuals and families in our region continue to suffer terribly under the health and economic impacts of the coronavirus and its fallout. Applications for unemployment benefits are at an all-time high, and local human service nonprofits now report a 3-5 fold increase in demand for their services. Direct financial assistance to individuals and families hardest hit by the crisis remains a top priority for our COVID-19 Response Fund.

Each of the following Round 4 grantees have the experience, community reach, and infrastructure to deploy financial assistance to our most vulnerable families and individuals. The grants, which total $280,000, will provide direct cash payments, emergency loans, and direct payments of rent, utilities, and groceries to those who most need it, as more fully described below.

In addition, through the grant to CASA de Virginia, we have given special attention to the disproportionate impact of the virus on the Latinx and Hispanic communities in Northern Virginia. Most of our health districts now report COVID-19 cases disaggregated by race and ethnicity. In the Fairfax Health District alone, for example, their most recent data dashboard shows that Latinx and Hispanics constitute 16.8% of the total county population but 63.7% of the COVID-19 cases!

$715,000 Awarded in Round Three Grants from the COVID-19 Response Fund for Northern Virginia

April 24, 2020

The Community Foundation for Northern Virginia is pleased to announce the Round 3 grantees from the COVID-19 Response Fund for Northern Virginia.

Organizations offering access to health care, mental health care, and dental health care for low income, uninsured and underinsured residents, and organizations offering direct services to victims of domestic violence which is soaring under stay at home orders across our region, were invited to apply. And while we originally estimated that approximately $350,000 would be awarded in Round 3, strong contributions to the COVID-19 Response Fund and a phenomenal demand for support has resulted in grants totaling $715,000 to the following 35 organizations on the front line of the pandemic.

Announcing the Second Round of Grants from the COVID-19 Response Fund for Northern Virginia

April 3, 2020

Today, the Community Foundation for Northern Virginia announces the grantees from Round 2 of the COVID-19 Response Fund for Northern Virginia.

Mindful that the coronavirus will have a disproportionate impact on people with the least ability to meet it, the Community Foundation directed Round 2 funding to local organizations meeting basic needs and offering emergency financial assistance to our most vulnerable neighbors. A total of $360,000 has been awarded to the following 28 organizations who continue to man the front lines of the crisis.

Community Foundation Announces 2020 Ross-Roberts Fund for the Arts Grantees

April 2, 2020

The Community Foundation for Northern Virginia recently announced the 2020 Ross-Roberts Fund for the Arts Grantees. This year’s recipients include the Arlington Arts Center, American Youth Philharmonic Orchestras, and Creative Cauldron, Inc. All three organizations received grants of $20,000 for two years in $10,000 installments per year. Programs supported by the grants include performing and visual arts, education and training, and art exhibitions.

Verisign Commits Major Donation to Northern Virginia COVID-19 Response Fund

March 31, 2020

In an effort to support the fast-emerging public health needs resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, VeriSign Inc. of Reston, Virginia announced that it is donating $500,000 to the COVID-19 Response Fund for Northern Virginia as part of a broader effort to support those in the region who are experiencing hardship due to the novel coronavirus pandemic.

Amazon Donates $1 Million to Washington, D.C. Region Community Foundations

March 18, 2020

The donation will kick-start COVID-19 response funds to four local community foundations

CFNOVA Doctors

Amazon has donated $1 million total to kick-start collaborative emergency COVID-19 response funds that will immediately benefit four local community foundations across the Greater Washington region who are working to support vulnerable populations disproportionately impacted amid the coronavirus outbreak. ACT for Alexandria, Arlington Community Foundation, Community Foundation for Northern Virginia and the Greater Washington Community Foundation will each use these funds for grants to nonprofits addressing food insecurity, housing/shelter, and providing emergency financial assistance.

3 Year-End Charitable Tools for Professional Advisors

November 18, 2019

Josiah Day

And just like that, the end of 2019 is upon us. As a professional advisor, you play a vital role in the lives of your clients and their families. But we understand there are a myriad of challenges that arise with your clients’ financial planning during this time of year -- and executing their charitable giving desires is no exception. It would be our privilege to support your efforts to maximize the philanthropic opportunities for you and your clients in the midst of these challenges.

An Interview with Bradley Frey

August 8, 2019

Brad Frey is the donor advisor for the J. Watkins Fund for Arts and Education. We recently asked him to share some thoughts on how this fund helps honor his husband’s legacy.

An Interview with Joel Brown

April 3, 2019

Joel Brown

Joel Brown, is a donor advisor for the XMS Fund, which supports youth, education, health and community improvement. We asked him to share some thoughts on how this fund helps the Northern Virginia region.

An Interview with Rod Harrell

April 1, 2019

Rod Harrell

Rod Harrell, is a donor advisor for the Rachel Harrell Memorial Fund. We asked him to share some thoughts on how this fund helps honor his wife's legacy.

An Interview with Stephen Roberts

November 13, 2018

Ross Roberts 1993b

Stephen S. Roberts and Dr. Sue Goetz Ross, pictured in 1993Stephen Roberts, a donor advisor for the Sue Goetz Ross and Stephen S. Roberts Music Fund, recently made a legacy gift to help launch the Ross-Roberts Fund for the Arts. We asked him to share some thoughts on how this new fund helps honor his wife's legacy.

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Tara Nadel

Questions?
Please contact Alex Carey (she/ they), Manager of Communications and Events.
703 347 7427 alex.carey@cfnova.org

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Raise the Region 2023 Register