Belair-Edison. Catonsville. Highlandtown. Howard Park. Lutherville. Lauraville. Little Italy. North Point. Oliver. Patterson Park. Pikesville. Reservoir Hill. Relay. Seton Hill. Turner Station. Waverly.
These are just a few of the dozens of communities across Baltimore City and County that have benefited from BCF’s strategic focus on neighborhoods and our grants for community-led projects and programs. Why have we focused so intently on neighborhoods? Because they are the heart of our region and the foundation for building a better Baltimore. Neighborhoods are where families raise children, and elders preserve and pass down history. They are where young people are inspired to serve, and artists find fertile ground to create. They are host to parks and green space that restore our spirits, and bike lanes and buses that connect us. They are where entrepreneurs create jobs, and schools educate future leaders.
From the beginning, the Baltimore Community Foundation recognized the importance of safe, clean, green, vibrant neighborhoods, with some of our earliest grants going to Neighborhood Housing Services and Baltimore City Fair. Fortunately, our ability to sustain and support stronger neighborhoods has grown over time thanks to generous donors and fundholders. One of the most well-known donors was former Baltimore Mayor William Donald Schaefer (the title he was most proud of, even after serving as governor and comptroller of the state of Maryland), who established the William Donald Schaefer Civic Fund with $400,000 in 2007, and subsequently made a bequest of an additional $1.4 million upon his death in 2011. The Schaefer Civic Fund has since helped to fund dozens of neighborhood improvement projects in Baltimore City and County.
Much has been accomplished in neighborhoods thanks to gifts like Mayor Schaefer’s, but the legacy of structural racism, including decades of disinvestment, persists. Much more is needed and possible, which is why we are launching a 50th Anniversary Neighborhood Grants Fund to enhance neighborhood-based grantmaking in 2022 in celebration of our anniversary, while sustaining—and further increasing—investments in the long term. We’re thrilled to announce that the first $100,000 in gifts to the 50th Anniversary Neighborhood Grants Fund will be matched with lead gifts from the Bozzuto Family Charitable Fund, Dorothy and Paul Wolman, and the Jean and Sidney Silber Family Fund.
None of the programs and projects we fund could be successful without dedicated residents leading the way, so we are also launching the Neighborhood Spotlight Awards to honor the unsung heroes working every day to improve the lives of their neighbors. They serve as block captains; as unofficial coordinators of community clean-ups, concerts, festivals, and cook-outs; as artists bringing beauty to gateways; and as tireless advocates for the resources their communities need to thrive. Over the coming months, residents of Baltimore City and County will have an opportunity to nominate their neighbors taking the initiative to build a better Baltimore. Selected recipients of Neighborhood Spotlight Awards will be recognized with grant awards to the nonprofits of their choice that are furthering their vision for a stronger community. Their inspiring efforts will also be celebrated at a BCF event this fall.
At BCF, we recognize the power of community members when they come together to dream, bringing visions of a better future to life, in ways both large and small. We hope you will join us in recognizing what has been accomplished and what is possible—when we do it together.
