When the Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque (CFGD) opened their doors in 2003, they had one simple goal in mind: help people give back to the local community. Today, the foundation continues to help invest in the Dubuque region through sustained partnerships, and has embarked on a two-decade long journey to strengthen communities and inspire giving.

CFGD's passion for supporting educational initiatives shines through several of their programs. Their Every Child Reads program is a collaborative effort among parents, educators, nonprofits and civic leaders in the Dubuque region to ensure that all children succeed in school and graduate prepared for college, a career, and active citizenship. Their YAPPERS initiative teaches high-school youth about philanthropy and gets them involved in acts of service to help the community thrive and be a positive space for everyone. Both initiatives seek to improve knowledge, relationships, and resources necessary to improve the quality of life in Dubuque’s rural communities.

Read more about their impact: https://dbqfoundation.org/initiatives

In 2023, the Community Foundation of the Ozarks celebrated 50 years of place-based philanthropy serving Springfield and south-central Missouri. Founded in 1973 with just $1,500 from 15 local banks, the foundation has grown into one of the nation’s largest and most active community foundations, stewarding more than $420 million in assets and directing nearly $600 million in grants, scholarships, and charitable distributions across the region.

A hallmark of the foundation’s work is its commitment to strengthening rural communities through philanthropy and partnership. Through its network of affiliate foundations across southern Missouri, the foundation helped launch the Rural Schools Partnership in 2010, an initiative designed to strengthen schools as anchors of rural communities. This work includes support for the nationally recognized Ozarks Teacher Corps, which helps prepare and place talented educators in rural schools across the region.

As the region’s largest public charitable foundation, the Community Foundation of the Ozarks continues to advance collaboration, resource development, and community leadership to enhance quality of life throughout the Ozarks.

Learn more about their impact: https://www.cfozarks.org/resou...

The Galesburg Community Foundation serves as a catalyst for philanthropy and community leadership across Knox, Warren, and Henderson counties in west central Illinois. Through strategic grant making, donor partnerships, and collaborative initiatives, the foundation works to strengthen nonprofits and address the region’s most pressing challenges—from education and workforce development to health and community vitality.

A strong commitment to collaboration defines the foundation’s work. The Galesburg Community Foundation partners with institutions such as Monmouth College to support rural education initiatives that connect schools and communities. Through this partnership, the Illinois Regional Hub of Rural Schools Collaborative helps advance Place-Based Education, educator leadership, and innovative programs that strengthen rural schools as anchors of their communities.

Beyond education, the foundation convenes community partners to address regional challenges through initiatives like collaborative grant making, bringing together nonprofits and local leaders to develop long-term solutions to issues such as food insecurity.

Learn more about their impact: https://www.yourgcf.org

The North Dakota Community Foundation (NDCF) is a national leader in regional philanthropy, and the organization is committed to supporting public education throughout what is largely a rural state. As part of our partnership with our North Dakota Hub partners, the North Dakota Small Organized Schools, we interviewed Kevin Dvorak, NDCF President and CEO.

Read more of this instructive interview on the important role of a regional community foundation.

At its most inspirational, a community foundation can transform a small town or community.

- Ron Giedd, Founder, Greater Area Seymour Foundation

Dr. Ron Giedd likes to tell people how he and his wife, Joanne, moved to Seymour, Missouri, in 1992 after firing a dart at a United States map.

The story is pure malarkey, but coming from the usually disheveled and grinning Giedd, his eyes twinkling, you are almost ready to buy it. Giedd is one of our favorite things about Seymour, along with its wonderful local newspaper, the Webster County Citizen. He tries hard to be a “character,” but he is in reality an extremely intelligent and thoughtful retired physics professor from the University of Connecticut, who moved to this small Ozarks’ community of 2,000 because of nearby relatives.

Giedd and the Greater Area Seymour Foundation are an inspiration to every small community. That’s why Giedd, current GSAF President Janice Blankenship, and other board and community members are featured in a new video the CFO produced to show that, yes, philanthropy can be very successful even in small communities that don’t have a lot of wealthy family or institutional benefactors.

Read the Seymour Story.