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The Winter ’25 Newsletter
Investing in Youth Success
Supporting Our Community Since 1954
The Gifford Foundation is a private foundation dedicated to the stewardship of the funds entrusted to its care. The Foundation is committed to using its financial and human resources to build the capacity of individuals and organizations to enhance the quality of life for the community we serve.
Capacity Building
We help nonprofits build the skills and resources necessary to boost their impact.
Grants
Since our inception, we have given out over $45 million to CNY nonprofits.
A Network of Support
Our staff works to facilitate development and growth within our community.
How We Help
We recognize that there are many individuals and organizations who have a drive to make a difference within their communities. Unfortunately, a lack of resources and training can stand in the way of making these ideas a reality. For 70 years, the Gifford Foundation has provided the grants and leadership training necessary to facilitate broad, community based change across CNY. Our capacity building initiatives help raise the bar for what’s possible.
Over $45 million in grants awarded
Grantmaking is traditionally reactive, but in line with our belief in community engagement we emphasize a personal approach. By developing a relationship with each grantee, we are better able to help them become strong and durable forces within our community.
Grants awarded since our founding
Engage With Us
Winter 2024 Newsletter
Explore stories, interviews, and strategic resources for you and your organization in this latest issue of The Gifford Newsletter.
Support
Explore our resource and program directory to see which opportunity is the best fit for you or your organization.
Meet Our Team
Our team directory allows you to instantly connect with and learn about our team members.
Read Our History
Take a look back at the origins of The Gifford Foundation as we celebrate our 70th year.
Sign Up For Our Mailings
Stay informed about events, grants, workshops, and more by joining our email list.
Socialize With Us
Are you connected with us on all of our platforms?
Featured Stories
Interviews, profiles, and other spotlights on the innovative nonprofit leaders making a difference in our community.
5 Takeaways from the Board Development Series
We recently collaborated with the Central New York Community Foundation to host a three-part Board Development Series, offered for free to the CNY nonprofit community.
For those of you who were not able to attend, or for those who would like a refresher on some of the materials covered, we created a recap of some of the major lessons covered during the workshop series.
Broadening Perspectives: How Boards Add Value
When it’s working the way that it should, a board of directors can be a dream come true: a team of dedicated professionals, from different backgrounds, who help keep an organization stable and headed in the right direction. And you don’t even have to pay them! It sounds like a fantasy. But anyone in the nonprofit world knows that it can also work in the opposite way: board members can be apathetic, they can be disconnected from the needs of the organization, and they can slow down its progress through poor decision making or by not making decisions at all.
How can you make sure that your organization’s board is adding value?
Making Hybrid Meetings Work For You
Nonprofit consultant Maria Fibiger has more than 15 years of experience in the field. Recently, she has seen many organizations struggle to successfully make the leap from in-person to hybrid – especially in the board room.
In this guest article, Maria explores the silver linings that come with hybrid board meetings and offers tips on how to grow engagement and set the stage for more impactful governance.
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