Foundation Annual Reports

GEORGE GUND FOUNDATION
1845 Guildhall Building
45 Prospect Avenue West
Cleveland, Ohio 44115
(216) 241-3114
http://www.gundfdn.org

Period covered: Year ending December 31, 2003.

Purpose and areas of support: The foundation was created in 1952 by George Gund, a resident of Cleveland who was active in banking, serving as president and chairman of the Cleveland Trust Company. Mr. Gund also held interests in real estate and other businesses, and was closely involved with several nonprofit institutions, most notably the Cleveland Institute of Art, Harvard University, and Kenyon College. Mr. Gund died in 1966, and members of the Gund family continue to serve on the foundation’s board.

In 2003, the foundation allocated 358 grants and one program-related investment totaling $17,970,271 in these program areas: economic development and community revitalization, which received $5,176,710; human services, $3,059,350; the environment, $2,999,165; special projects, $2,323,421; the arts, $2,158,475; education, $1,818,050; and civic affairs, $435,100.

Grants for economic development and community revitalization are directed primarily to benefit Cleveland residents, although the foundation will consider projects in metropolitan Cleveland and programs of statewide significance. The program places high priority on activities designed to create jobs and livable neighborhoods for inner-city residents. Support for economic-development and community-revitalization projects was up substantially, from $3,613,653 the previous year. This was due in large part to a three-year, $2,750,000 grant to the Cleveland Foundation for the Fund for Our Economic Future, a $30-million collaboration of dozens of groups committed to spurring entrepreneurship and revitalizing northeastern Ohio’s economy.

Human-services grants emphasize programs within Cuyahoga County that enhance child welfare and protection and increase the overall stability of families. Within this framework, the foundation supports efforts to mitigate the effects of poverty, including programs that deal with welfare-to-work transition, interpersonal violence, and such basic human needs as clothing, food, and shelter. It also stresses efforts to improve social-welfare policies at the local, state, and national levels.

The foundation made several grants to projects focused on the interrelationship between family stability, the re-entry of prisoners into communities, and the criminal-justice system.

The fund’s environment program seeks to conserve natural ecosystems; to help protect human health through reductions in environmental toxics and waste; to encourage “smart growth” and reduce urban sprawl; to enhance press coverage and public understanding of environmental issues; to promote “green” buildings; and to build leadership in the field.

Geographically, environmental grant making emphasizes projects in metropolitan Cleveland and the Lake Erie/Ohio River watersheds, with some support also given to programs that have statewide or regional implications.

Arts grant making emphasizes programs that benefit metropolitan Cleveland, particularly in the areas of art education, cultural diversity, film and media, and the performing arts.

The foundation’s annual report features the work of the renowned photographer Andrea Modica. Her numerous black-and-white portraits depict women who have embarked on careers in nontraditional fields with the aid of Hard Hatted Women, a Cleveland group that is a longtime Gund grantee.

Application procedure: The deadlines for proposal submissions are December 30, March 30, June 30, and September 30. Proposals are due the next business day if a deadline falls on a weekend. Lists of previously awarded grants and detailed program and proposal-submission guidelines are available on the foundation’s Web site.

Key officials: David T. Abbott, executive director; Robert B. Jaquay, associate director and senior program officer for civic affairs and economic development and community revitalization; Marcia Egbert, senior program officer for human services; Deena M. Epstein, senior program officer for the arts; Jeffrey M. Glebocki, senior program officer for education; Jon M. Jensen, senior program officer for the environment; Geoffrey Gund, president and treasurer of the Board of Trustees.

MOODY FOUNDATION
2302 Postoffice Street, Suite 704
Galveston, Tex. 77550
(409) 797-1500
http://www.moodyf.org

Period covered: Two years ending December 31, 2003.

Purpose and areas of support: The foundation was established in 1942 by William Lewis (W.L.) Moody Jr. and his wife, Libbie Shearn Moody, both longtime residents of Galveston, Tex. The couple’s commercial interests included banks, cotton, hotels, insurance, newspapers, and ranches. The foundation’s current Board of Trustees comprises three members of the Moody family.

The foundation’s grant making initially focused on local charities in Galveston and later on programs in Texas that emphasized education, the arts, health, and community and social services.

In the 1980s, the foundation initiated two large-scale projects: the Transitional Learning Center at Galveston, a research and rehabilitation institution that focuses on traumatic brain injury, and Moody Gardens, a complex in Galveston that includes a large aquarium, the city’s convention center, a hotel, a 10-story enclosed tropical rainforest, an IMAX theater, and therapeutic programs for people with physical and mental disabilities.

The Moody Foundation’s commitment to Moody Gardens accounted for the lion’s share of its grant making in 2002 and 2003, including $147,328,000 to expand the convention center and hotel, $16,839,798 to build a parking garage, and $200,000 to upgrade the IMAX projection and sound system.

According to the foundation, it is likely that for several more years a substantial portion of the foundation’s resources will be devoted to Moody Gardens and to the Transitional Learning Center, which received $30,277,130 over the same period.

The foundation continues to make 20 to 30 grant awards each year to other organizations. These allocations emphasize support for the arts, education, and social services in Austin, Dallas, and Galveston.

Arts awards included $10,000 to the Dallas Museum of Art to underwrite an exhibition entitled “The Gilded Age: Treasures From the Smithsonian American Art Museum.”

Other awards included $15,000 to Gilda’s Club North Texas, in Dallas, for a new facility for cancer patients and their families, and $10,000 to Wild Basin Wilderness, in Austin, for an after-school program that engages youngsters in hands-on environmental-education activities.

The foundation administers the Moody Scholars Program, which provides financial aid for higher education to needy Galveston County students, and maintains a second office, in Dallas.

Application procedure: The foundation’s grant making is restricted to 501(c)(3) organizations based in Texas. Application guidelines may be requested by writing a one-page inquiry letter to the foundation’s grants director at the address given or by calling the foundation.

Key officials: Frances Moody-Dahlberg, executive director; Peter M. Moore, grants director; Harold C. MacDonald, comptroller; Gerald J. Smith, program officer; E. Douglas McLeod, director of development; Jamie G. Williams, Dallas regional grants director; Robert L. Moody Sr., chairman of the Board of Trustees.

ROSE COMMUNITY FOUNDATION

600 South Cherry Street
Suite 1200
Denver, Colo. 80246
(303) 398-7400
http://www.rcfdenver.org

Period covered: Year ending December 31, 2003.

Purpose and areas of support: The foundation was endowed in 1995 with proceeds generated through the sale of Rose Medical Center, in Denver, to a for-profit health-care corporation. The center was named for Major General Maurice Rose, a Denver native and World War II hero, and had been established following the war by local Jewish physicians and community leaders.

Grant making concentrates on five programs: aging, child and family development, education, health, and Jewish life. To a lesser extent, the foundation makes some grants for projects related to civil rights and nondiscrimination, strengthening philanthropy, and promoting positive civic discourse. In 2003, the foundation approved 750 grants totaling $8,119,000.

Geographically, the foundation supports nonprofit and tax-supported institutions that serve the metropolitan Denver area, including Adams, Arapahoe, Boulder, Broomfield, Denver, Douglas, and Jefferson Counties.

The foundation’s Jewish-life program awarded grants totaling $2,106,884 for efforts to link unaffiliated Jews to Jewish life and to each other, to promote lifelong learning and personal growth, to strengthen Jewish organizations, and to develop leadership at Jewish institutions.

For example, the Rocky Mountain Rabbinical Council, in Denver, received $20,000 to expand and market a course on Judaism for Jews seeking further education and for individuals converting to Judaism.

The foundation’s health program awarded grants totaling $1,411,748 for efforts to prevent disease and injuries and to promote health in low-income communities; to expand access to health care for uninsured and disadvantaged children, youths, and families; and to foster health-policy changes and public-health leadership.

The child- and family-development program allocated grants totaling $1,102,466. Emphasis is placed on child-rearing education, high-quality early-childhood education, employment and training activities, and support services for low-income families. Awards included $12,000 to the Community Action Development Corporation, in Boulder, to provide financial-management training to low-income families.

The education program awarded grants totaling $965,649 for projects to ensure that teachers adhere to high standards and to institute systemic improvements in education from prekindergarten through 12th grade.

For example, $150,000 went to the Skyland Community High School, in Denver, for the inaugural year of this urban school that focuses on individualized teaching methods.

The foundation’s program on aging allocated grants totaling $749,308. Projects emphasized helping low- and moderate-income elderly people remain safe and independent in their own homes through in-home and community services, access to transportation, and better end-of-life care.

In January 2003, the foundation concluded the Endowment Challenge, its four-year partnership with the Allied Jewish Federation of Colorado. The program resulted in the creation of $19-million in endowed funds for use by 19 Jewish organizations that serve residents of metropolitan Denver and Boulder.

In December 2003, the foundation’s board approved BOOST (Building Organizational Operating Strength Together), a three-year, $1.93-million program designed to improve the financial status and business planning of 10 foundation grantees.

Application procedure: Prior to applying, grant seekers should visit the foundation’s Web site to review its “Guidelines for Grant Proposals,” which provides detailed information on eligibility, program priorities, and proposal content and format. Potential applicants may also call the foundation at (303) 398-7400 to request a copy of the guidelines. The foundation does not have submission deadlines. Foundation staff members review proposals as they are received, and may request additional information or arrange a site visit.

Key officials: Sheila Bugdanowitz, president and chief executive officer; Phil Nash, vice president for communications; Katherine Peck, vice president for programs; Carolyn Schaefer Wollard, vice president for donor services; Anne M. Garcia, chief financial officer; Denise Lourdes Delgado, grants manager; Stephen H. Shogan, chair of the Board of Trustees.

Senior program officers: Phillip A. Gonring (education), Elsa I. Holguín (child and family development), Lisa Farber Miller (Jewish life), and Annie V. Wohlgenant (health).