Finding Unity

Building Community

Opportunities abound to enrich and strengthen our communities and positive change happens when people come together to achieve common goals. The Community Foundation skillfully connects the right people, programs, and resources to help local communities realize opportunities for positive change.

Changing Our World

The Bama Works Fund of Dave Matthews Band inspires us to remember that we have the power to change the world, starting here at home. Through significant investment in the creative arts, Bama Works has ensured that a generation of young artists can create, collaborate and make a mark in our community and beyond.

Local Philanthropy

Over the past five years, fourteen philanthropists have used their donor-advised funds at the Community Foundation to support a group of non-profit leaders spearheading a local food movement. Area farmers sell their produce locally for a fair price. Area residents obtain nutritious, locally grown food.

Collective Impact

Philanthropy evolves from one generation to the next. The Future Fund is rejuvenating the power of philanthropy to lead our community forward. Members connect, explore opportunities to make a difference, share new ideas, and invest their pooled resources for the good of the community.

Visionary Philanthropy

Researchers, clinicians, and philanthropists in Charlottesville are collaborating with like minds around the globe to accelerate the adoption of focused ultrasound - a transformative technology that eliminates invasive surgical procedures that can be as dangerous as the diseases they seek to treat.

Vital Connections

How has our community managed to preserve clean water and rural landscapes in the face of rapid growth? The answer is found in the places where the land, water and people meet. Our State of the Community report explores these connections and the nonprofit groups who have helped local communities achieve uncommon success in preserving our natural heritage.

Philanthrophy in Action

The decisions that shape our community are increasingly being made locally. The Community Foundation harnesses the power of local philanthropy to foster new ways of working together to move our communities forward.

Sustainable Impact

Complex challenges require innovative solutions. The Community Foundation is an active partner with local individuals, nonprofits, businesses and governments to create positive and lasting change across our area.

Deep Roots

For nearly five decades, the Community Foundation has cultivated strong relationships and local expertise to improve the quality of life for people throughout our region.

Enriching Community

The Community Foundation proudly connects hundreds of nonprofit organizations and agencies working across our region with critical resources and opportunities made possible by the generosity of local donors. The collective impact of this work is transformational.

Investing for Good

The Community Foundation invests for good. We work alongside others and allocate charitable assets to improve the quality of life in our area.

50th Anniversary Celebration

On June 14, 12:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m., join us on the Downtown Mall for a celebration of the artistry and diversity of Charlottesville and the work of local nonprofits in the community.

A Message to Our Community

The Charlottesville Area Community Foundation absolutely condemns the racism, hatred, intimidation and terrorism demonstrated by white supremacist groups that we witnessed with horror over the weekend. Our hearts go out to our fellow community members who were viciously attacked and injured, and we are deeply saddened by the tragic loss of Heather Heyer, Lt. H. Jay Cullen and Trooper Berke Bates. Our thoughts and prayers are with their family members and friends.

We also want to send a message of love and appreciation to all members of our community, and especially to those whose race, faith, gender identity or sexual orientation have made them targets of hatred and violence.

The Foundation exists to support and serve all who live in and around Charlottesville, and now, more than ever, we are determined to pull together and become an even stronger community. Thank you to all who have already reached out to support the people of Charlottesville. If you would like to contribute to a fund that will continue these efforts, please donate below. All proceeds will be directed toward supporting the restoration, reconciliation and healing process that lies ahead.

Anne Scott
President and CEO

A Message to Our Community

We also want to send a message of love and appreciation to all members of our community, and especially to those whose race, faith, gender identity or sexual orientation have made them targets of hatred and violence.

The Foundation exists to support and serve all who live in and around Charlottesville, and now, more than ever, we are determined to pull together and become an even stronger community. Thank you to all who have already reached out to support the people of Charlottesville. If you would like to contribute to a fund that will continue these efforts, please donate to the Heal Charlottesville Fund. See below for more information about the purpose of this new fund.

Anne Scott
President and CEO
Charlottesville Area Community Foundation

Heal Charlottesville Fund

In recent months, the Charlottesville community has experienced a series of terrorist acts and intimidation by white supremacists intended to instill fear and send a message of hatred and bigotry. These acts have deeply hurt, shocked and frightened many residents.

The Community Foundation has established the Heal Charlottesville Fund to support both immediate needs and longer-term reconciliation efforts. Depending on the level of resources available, the Fund will support some or all of the opportunities below:

1. Immediate Assistance and Stabilization
The Foundation will connect local mental health providers with residents seeking trauma counseling and mental health services, and will support victims of the car attack who may need assistance with medical expenses. Working with law enforcement and leaders of neighborhoods under threat of potential ongoing attacks, we will identify and support areas where additional crisis intervention would be helpful.

2. Acknowledgement, Community Dialogue and Reconciliation
It is critical that the community acknowledges and works to understand what has happened in Charlottesville, not only as it relates to this summer’s rallies, marches, and violent attacks, but also the larger picture of both historical and ongoing white supremacy and systemic and institutional racism in our own community.

We will engage with leading experts and facilitators who can design and guide our conversations to generate honest, two-way dialogue about challenging topics that results in empathy and deeper relationships among people holding different viewpoints. The voices of residents and community leaders, particularly those who have been historically disenfranchised and excluded, will be integral to this community dialogue.

3. Restoration and Healing
Through an authentic dialogue and reconciliation process, our community can identify actions or investments that will meaningfully acknowledge and ease the pain that many have suffered. We will work toward solutions that seek to achieve equitable outcomes and increased opportunities for disenfranchised and marginalized communities, including workforce programs, scholarships and other activities that begin to address disparities stemming from racism and bigotry.

We will make funds available for nonprofits and community organizations to undertake their own efforts to increase diversity, equity, and inclusion within their organizations.

4. Fund Leadership and Decision-making
A committee of six to eight individuals will oversee the Fund and direct allocations to reconciliation activities and the resulting restoration and healing efforts. The committee will include experts in community reconciliation processes, individuals whose communities may have undergone similar processes, and authentic, local community leaders who are knowledgeable about what different constituencies need and want.

5. Communications
The broader community will receive communications about how work is evolving, who is involved and how people can engage. Additionally, regular progress reports will be provided to donors and key constituencies as the multi-year effort unfolds.

Charlottesville

Albemarle

Buckingham

Fluvanna

Greene

Louisa

Nelson

Orange

Contact & Connect

PO Box 1767 | 114 4th Street SE | Charlottesville, VA | 22902

Phone: 434.296.1024 email: cacf@cacfonline.org