LACF News – The Los Alamos Community Foundation announced today that longtime resident and community theatre participant, Ken Milder, has established the Los Alamos Little Theatre (LALT) Endowment Fund with a seed gift of $10,000. The purpose of the fund is to provide unrestricted operating support to LALT.
“I want to support the Little Theatre because it’s tough to sustain a performing arts center, put on plays, and provide educational programs and opportunities for experience and learning,” said Milder. “I also want to make sure that the Little Theatre has financial support in down years because things like the pandemic can be devastating, and unfortunately not every play makes money,” he added.
LALT, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit community theater group, was founded in 1943 and has been providing entertainment since the days of the Manhattan Project. Productions take place in the Performing Arts Center (PAC), which LALT operates on behalf of Los Alamos County.
Milder, who worked at Los Alamos National Laboratory for 38 years, believes there is a strong relationship between science and the arts. “During my time at the Lab, what I observed almost without exception is that LANL Fellows have a strong foundation in the arts, humanities and music,” said Milder.
“A foundation in the arts helps people apply technical knowledge in creative and outside-the-box ways. For our country to remain a leader in science, engineering and design, we need the arts,” Milder said. “Personally, I’ve benefited greatly from the arts. I’ve been involved in performing arts since I was 13, and when I moved to Los Alamos the very first organization I joined was the Little Theatre.” Milder added, “We must add arts to science, technology, engineering and mathematics education and call it STEAM!”
Steve Laurent, Executive Director of LACF, noted that Ken’s contribution is just a first step. “There is a need to grow the endowment significantly so it can relieve LALT of the pressure to raise funds and allow it to focus on what it does best – providing the gift of theater to the community. I encourage anyone who has been a member of, or has been entertained or touched by, the Little Theatre to consider contributing to the fund,” Laurent said.
To donate to the LALT Endowment, go to losalamoscf.org/donate.
About the Los Alamos Little Theatre: Founded in 1943, LALT has been providing entertainment on the “Hill” since the days of the Manhattan Project. LALT serves the following purposes: to produce plays and other dramatic works; to promote the interest of the public in drama and dramatic productions; to instruct and educate members in the dramatic arts and related subjects; and to furnish the community of Los Alamos with a source of dramatic talent. For more information, visit www.lalt.org.
About the Los Alamos Community Foundation: Established in 2015, the Los Alamos Community Foundation seeks to improve the quality of life in our community by inspiring, facilitating and supporting enduring philanthropy and building the capacity and success of our local nonprofit organizations. The Los Alamos Community Foundation currently stewards fourteen locally endowed funds and has total assets of nearly $900,000. For more information about the Los Alamos Community Foundation, visit www.losalamoscf.org.
By CAROL A. CLARK
Los Alamos Daily Post
caclark@ladailypost.com
On Wednesday, the Los Alamos Community Foundation (LACF) received the latest matching funds from Enterprise Bank & Trust as part of the bank’s three-year Community Challenge. Enterprise created the Community Endowment in 2019 and committed to funding the endowment $50,000 per year for three years. Presented as a challenge to the Los Alamos community, the commitment of Enterprise was based on LACF securing equal matching funds from local donors.
“Enterprise Bank is proud to partner with Los Alamos Community Foundation. The establishment of this Endowment secures beneficial programming for our community forever,” said Liddie Martinez, Enterprise Bank President – Los Alamos Region and Director of Community Engagement.
Each year of the effort, the community rose to the challenge. The first two years were successfully completed and LACF has secured $50,000 in pledges to complete year three. Although $40,000 was presented Wednesday, Enterprise will fund the final $10,000 endowment amount once all the outstanding pledges have been collected.
“Enterprise Bank & Trust has been a valuable partner to Los Alamos Community Foundation since its inception more than six years ago,” LACF Board President David Izraelevitz said. “They host our office in their building and provide financial management services to us as well. These matching funds will allow us to make a greater impact on our community, supporting the great nonprofits in Los Alamos and our region. We look forward to more partnerships with Enterprise in the future.”
The purpose of the Enterprise Bank & Trust Community Endowment is to provide grants for charitable, scientific, literary or educational objectives that benefit residents of Los Alamos County. As an endowment, LACF invests the principal and earnings are distributed to the community in the form of grants to local nonprofits. Funds are awarded through a grant cycle that takes place each spring. The endowment principal is never touched, ensuring the endowment will be giving back to the community in perpetuity.
“Enterprise is such a great supporter of the community. This endowment is a truly wonderful gift that will keep on giving. We are equally grateful for the amazing group of local donors who saw this opportunity and stepped up generously to provide the matching side of the funds,” LACF Executive Director Steve Laurent said. “I could not think of a better way for Enterprise to show its long-term commitment to Los Alamos than by creating this endowment. These funds will be generating income to support our community essentially forever. Liddie and her team at Enterprise secured the commitment and challenged the community to raise a matching amount, and we did. This is a tremendous success story all around, especially for the organizations doing such important work in the community who will benefit from the endowment for years to come.”
Laurent explained that just because Enterprise Bank fulfilled its initial commitment does not mean the endowment is complete.
“Our ongoing job is to continue to grow the endowment through additional contributions. Anyone can contribute to the endowment at any time,” he said. “One of the important things is that the endowment funds are unrestricted, meaning that funding is not limited to a specific organization or cause. This means that funding will always be available to address changing needs in our community, now and well into the future. The mission of the Los Alamos Community Foundation is to build enduring philanthropy to empower our community’s nonprofit organizations. To learn more about how you can participate in building lasting support for our local nonprofits, go to losalamoscf.org or call 505.661.4420.”
To date, the Enterprise Bank & Trust Community Endowment has supported a number of local nonprofit organizations including: Self Help, Inc., Los Alamos Visiting Nurse Service, Los Alamos JJAB, Los Alamos Retired and Senior Organization, Family Strengths Network, Los Alamos Makers, First Born Program of Los Alamos, The Family YMCA, Los Alamos Arts Council, Los Alamos Public Schools Foundation, Pajarito Environmental Education Center and Mind&Melody. To learn more about Enterprise Bank & Trust, visit enterprisebank&trust.com.
About the Los Alamos Community Foundation: Established in 2015, the focus of the Los Alamos Community Foundation is to build enduring philanthropy to empower our community’s nonprofit organizations. The Los Alamos Community Foundation currently stewards 14 local endowed funds and has total assets of more than $975,000. For more information about the Los Alamos Community Foundation, visit www.losalamoscf.org.
LACF News – Eleven local nonprofit organizations are the recipients of more than $37,900 in discretionary and donor designated grants from the Los Alamos Community Foundation (LACF) this year. Committees comprised of LACF board members and community members selected the following organizations through a competitive proposal process.
Discretionary grants to improve financial health:
Family Strengths Network ($5,000)
“Funding from LACF is helping Family Strengths Network (FSN) achieve its goal of user-friendly service for our clients, and improved data management. This funding will simplify registering for programs, and using FSN’s Beth Ladino Family Resource Library and the Toy Library. It will also streamline data management for staff, which will free up valuable time for FSN’s important work with families.” -Carie Fanning, Executive Director
Los Alamos Arts Council ($5,000)
“This grant supports new technology at LAAC. We will be utilizing this grant to initiate the purchase of several new computers and to upgrade an aging infrastructure at Fuller Lodge Art Center.” -Maria Crane, Executive Director
Los Alamos Makers ($3,931)
“This funding will allow us to safely expand our technical training and skills badges offering by including laser manufacturing training. The project is in line with our mission of helping all individuals have access to skills-building opportunities and help build confidence in exploring career opportunities.” -Prisca Tiasse, Director
Los Alamos Public Schools Foundation ($1,300)
“We’re grateful to Los Alamos Community Foundation for awarding a grant for $1,300 to refresh our website. This funding will help us complete the project and further our goal to offer timely, updated and interesting information in a visually appealing way that encourages the LAPS Foundation community to use the website as a valuable resource. We’re here to support the Schools, and we want people to know about the exciting things we do.” -Jenny McCumber, Executive Director
Mind & Melody ($5,000)
“Mind & Melody will use this grant to launch the first of its programs in the state. Our organization uses music to help seniors regain pieces of themselves while instilling purpose and empathy in younger generations.” -Cristina Rodriguez, Executive Director
The Family YMCA ($5,000)
“As we look at our capital needs over the next several years, we need to provide training for both key staff and board members to expand fundraising capacity. This funding will allow us to send staff and board leadership to a national training that has proven successful in helping us increase our fundraising efforts and success in the past. Having access to these resources will keep our small staff inspired and help us build stronger relationships in our community, with our partners as well as our members and participants.” -Chris Daniels, Chief Executive Officer
Donor-Designated and Field-of-Interest Grants
$500 to Los Alamos Community Winds from the Community Endowment for Music Organizations
$1,531 to the Los Alamos Arts Council from the Rosalie Heller Annual Memorial Lecture Endowment
$1,668 to support LACF’s Nonprofit Training Program and Community Philanthropy Series from the Diane Warther Soran Endowment for Community Programs
$1,700 to The Family YMCA to the Cherry Bombs roller derby team from the Los Alamos Community Endowment for Youth Sports
$2,000 to Los Alamos Public Schools Foundation from the Paul A. and Susan E. Bombardt K-12 Music Education Endowment for Los Alamos Public Schools
$2,063 to Los Alamos Public Schools to support ongoing maintenance of the Duane Smith Auditorium from the Endowment for Duane Smith Auditorium
$3,250 to United Way of Northern New Mexico through a grant from Con Alma Health Foundation
About the Los Alamos Community Foundation:
Established in 2015, the focus of LACF is to build enduring philanthropy to empower our community’s nonprofit organizations. LACF currently stewards 14 local endowed funds and has total assets of more than $975,000. For more information about the Los Alamos Community Foundation, visit www.losalamoscf.org.
(LACF News) – The All Together NM Fund will award emergency grants to nonprofit organizations providing relief to New Mexico communities affected by the 2022 wildfires. New Mexico nonprofits and federally-recognized tribes are encouraged to apply today.
Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis and all funding will be for core operating support. In general, grants will be up to $5,000. The application period opened June 1, 2022.
Learn more and apply today: https://www.alltogethernm.org/apply
The All Together NM Fund was established in 2020 by the New Mexico Coalition of Community Foundations in conjunction with the Governor’s office to help New Mexico respond to and eventually recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. The Fund has been reactivated to address the recent wildfires that have impacted our neighbors across the state of New Mexico.
Funding Priorities:
- Organizations providing basic and emergency food and shelter needs;
- Organizations providing immediate and increased access to physical, mental and behavioral health services; and
- Organizations providing other critical services to communities affected by recent wildfires including, but not limited to early childhood needs, gas cards, cash assistance, and animal accommodations.
The New Mexico Coalition of Community Foundations coordinate the Fund.
Members include:
- Los Alamos Community Foundation;
- Albuquerque Community Foundation;
- Community Foundation of Southern New Mexico;
- New Mexico Foundation;
- Santa Fe Community Foundation; and
- Taos Community Foundation.
These organizations, in turn, work with the broader philanthropic community across New Mexico and consult with the State of New Mexico to determine the most urgent needs to be addressed through grantmaking from the All Together NM Fund.
About the Los Alamos Community Foundation:
Established in 2015, the focus of LACF is to improve the quality of life in the community by inspiring, facilitating and supporting enduring philanthropy, and building the capacity and success of local nonprofit organizations. LACF stewards 14 local endowed funds and has total assets of more than $975,000. For more information about the Los Alamos Community Foundation, visit www.losalamoscf.org.
(LACF News) – The Los Alamos Community Foundation announces its Spring 2022 grantmaking cycle, and invites 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations located in Los Alamos County to submit a grant application under any of the following funding categories:
Discretionary Grants:
Nonprofits can request up to $5,000 to fund projects that increase the overall financial health of the organization. LACF defines “financial health” as any effort which results in a measurable improvement across one or more dimensions of an organization’s financial sustainability, to include, but not limited to, areas such as: diversifying funding sources and income streams, building technological capacity that allows for increased efficiencies, investing in board development to ensure proper governance and fiduciary oversight, pursuing a formal financial audit or review, or increasing marketing efforts to broaden community outreach thereby bringing in new donors/customers/clients.
Youth Sports:
Nonprofits can request up to $1,700 to fund competitive youth sports activities. Organizations are invited to apply for funding for projects that build leadership skills in youth through achievement in competitive team sports. Youth served by the program must be located in Los Alamos County and/or attend Los Alamos public schools, and be between the ages of 5-18 years old.
Music Organizations:
Nonprofits can request up to $500 in unrestricted operating support. This funding cycle is open to nonprofits whose work expands knowledge and appreciation of genres such as classical, orchestral and band music, light opera, marching band, and choral performances, for adult populations.
The grant application cycle opens Friday, April 1 at 9:00am and closes Friday, April 29 at 5:00pm. Applicants will be notified of their funding status during the second half of May. Funds will be distributed late May.
Nonprofits interested in applying are welcome to attend either of the following optional virtual information sessions: Thursday, March 24 at 3:30pm, and Tuesday, March 29 at 9:00am. To attend either session, register here: losalamoscf.org/ticket. A zoom link will be provided.
Organizations that do not have 501(c)(3) status and would like to apply for funding may do so through the use of a fiscal sponsor.
More information on this year’s grant cycle can be found here.
About the Los Alamos Community Foundation: Established in 2015, the focus of the Los Alamos Community Foundation is to build enduring philanthropy to empower our community’s nonprofit organizations. The Los Alamos Community Foundation currently stewards 14 local endowed funds and has total assets of more than $975,000. For more information about the Los Alamos Community Foundation, visit www.losalamoscf.org.
(LACF News) – Reminiscing about the importance of competitive sports in the growth and maturity of their children and their friends sparked in Paul and Jill Cook a special project in 2019. In collaboration with the Los Alamos Community Foundation, they decided to create an endowment that would provide perpetual financial support to further youth sports in Los Alamos County.
Initially funded with their seed contribution of $25,000, the Los Alamos Community Youth Sports Endowment has now grown to over $66,000 from additional contributions and investment earnings. Los Alamos Community Foundation is responsible for investing the fund corpus under the supervision of an investment committee while making available each year 4% of the endowment to a competitively-chosen local youth sports organization. After reserving an administrative fee to further the foundation itself, any financial growth above and beyond those distributions is reinvested back into the endowment for the future. As the endowment grows, so does its annual distribution, which means that more grant dollars become available over time to further the fund’s mission.
The Los Alamos Community Youth Sports Endowment made its first distribution in 2021 through a competitive selection process to which five nonprofits in Los Alamos County applied. Local roller derby team, The Cherry Bombs, was chosen to receive a $1,200 grant to fund their participation in away bouts and support hosting home bouts.
When Los Alamos Community Foundation’s Spring 2022 grant cycle opens on April 1, nonprofits in Los Alamos will again have the opportunity to apply for a grant. Thanks to the generosity of donors and prudent investment of this fund, $1,700 is available this year from the endowment. Visit LACF’s website for more details on this soon-to-be-announced grant cycle.
Los Alamos Community Foundation is proud to help civic-minded community members like the Cooks create endowments that align with their passions. If you would like to have a conversation about supporting your philanthropic passions in Los Alamos, contact the foundation’s Executive Director, Rachel Kizielewicz, at 505-661-4420 or rachel@losalamoscf.org.
About the Los Alamos Community Foundation: Established in 2015, the focus of the Los Alamos Community Foundation is to build enduring philanthropy to empower our community’s nonprofit organizations. The Los Alamos Community Foundation currently stewards 14 local endowed funds and has total assets of more than $975,000. For more information about the Los Alamos Community Foundation, visit www.losalamoscf.org.
(LACF News) – Technology is increasingly woven into our lives and the day-to-day of business. How can organizations effectively manage teleworking employees? How can you modernize your HR-related recordkeeping, and keep documents with sensitive personnel information digitally secure? Los Alamos Community Foundation is offering an interactive virtual workshop on March 15, from 9:00 am to 12:00 pm, to help nonprofit organizations explore the intersection of technology and HR. This class is geared towards those who manage operations and use of technology within their organization, as well any leaders of organizations with remote or hybrid employees.
The session will be facilitated by Kari Sutton, who started Living Room HR to support nonprofits and small businesses with their human resource needs. “There are so many ways that technology can help improve workplaces, but there are also so many ways that it can just get in the way,” says Sutton. “I think it helps to form a clear idea of where your organization wants to go, and then make sure that technology is supporting you in getting there.”
Title: HR Policies, Hybrid Work, and Technology – Oh My!
Date: Tuesday, March 15, 2022
Structure: Virtual
Cost: $50 per organization
Register here: COMPLETED
Presenter: Kari Sutton
Attendees: Nonprofits are welcome to have multiple people from their organization participate in the session, with only one ticket needed per organization.
About the Los Alamos Community Foundation: Established in 2015, the focus of the Los Alamos Community Foundation is to build enduring philanthropy to empower our community’s nonprofit organizations. The Los Alamos Community Foundation currently stewards 14 local endowed funds and has total assets of more than $975,000. For more information about the Los Alamos Community Foundation, visit www.losalamoscf.org.
(LACF News) – After four years leading the organization through a period of record growth and development, the Board of Directors of the Los Alamos Community Foundation announced today that Rachel Kizielewicz has resigned as Executive Director. Kizielewicz’s resignation is effective May 31, 2022 to provide an ample search and transition period.
“This past summer, my family and I relocated back to the East Coast to be closer to our relatives, as the pandemic made it too hard to live 2,000 miles away from our extended family,” said Kizielewicz. “For the past six months, I’ve been returning to Los Alamos as often as possible, and while I love this organization enough to travel these miles in service of our mission, I’m afraid there is no escaping the realization that the distance will end up doing too much of a disservice to our work over time,” she added.
Under Kizielewicz’s tenure, the Foundation has:
- grown from $175,000 in assets to approximately $1,000,000
- provided a total of over $100,000, for nonprofit grant funding and awarded grants to eight local NPOs in its first competitive grant cycle in 2021
- expanded the annual nonprofit training program which provides quality, low cost, local workshops focused on capacity-building
- launched the free community philanthropy series focused on how communities can become better supporters of local nonprofits
- grown the number of endowments from 1 to 14
- expanded the Board to eight dedicated community members
“We were very fortunate to find in Rachel someone who had the professional skills and personal warmth to bring us to where we are today,” said LACF board president David Izraelevitz. “When she joined four years ago, we were taking baby steps in bringing a community foundation to Los Alamos, and our progress has been tremendous, and Rachel was a key contributor to this progress. We will miss her very much,” he added.
LACF board member and UNMLA Chancellor Dr. Cindy Rooney also expressed her gratitude for Kizielewicz’s leadership.
“Rachel has consistently exemplified professionalism and grace as she engaged and challenged our community to grow philanthropically, “said Rooney. “Her commitment to the Los Alamos Community Foundation and its mission, and the work to support local non-profits, have benefited the entire community in Los Alamos.”
Rooney added that the Board has started the search process for a new executive director, and the position description can be found at https://www.losalamoscf.org/employment-opportunities.
“My heart is heavy; however, I believe it is now time to pass the baton to the next person to lead the Los Alamos Community Foundation through its new phase of growth and development,” said Kizielewicz.
About the Los Alamos Community Foundation: Established in 2015, the focus of the Los Alamos Community Foundation is to improve the quality of life in our community by inspiring, facilitating and supporting enduring philanthropy, and building the capacity and success of our local nonprofit organizations. The Los Alamos Community Foundation currently stewards 14 local endowed funds and has total assets of approximately $1,000,000. For more information about the Los Alamos Community Foundation, visit www.losalamoscf.org.
(LACF News) – Los Alamos Community Foundation invites you to join a robust discussion on why philanthropy matters for a healthy community. Topics include trends and concepts in community philanthropy and the application of these trends within our local context. We will examine collective generosity and illuminate the “why” of philanthropy for Los Alamos as well as look at how other communities promote a culture of philanthropy. Leading the discussion will be national expert Dr. Laurie Paarlberg, Professor of Philanthropic Studies, Chair on Community Foundations, Lilly Family School of Philanthropy, Indiana University.
This session, which is part of the Los Alamos Community Foundation’s Philanthropic Series, is FREE thanks to the generous sponsorship of Century Bank. Advance registration is required at: losalamoscf.org/ticket.
Why Philanthropy Matters for a Healthy Community
Friday, February 4, 2022 (Virtual)
9:00-10:30am
Cost: Free (advance registration required)
Register here: losalamoscf.org/ticket
Have an idea for a session that you think our community needs? Let us know at info@losalamoscf.org.
About the Los Alamos Community Foundation: Established in 2015, the focus of the Los Alamos Community Foundation is to improve the quality of life in our community by inspiring, facilitating, and supporting enduring philanthropy, and building the capacity and success of our local nonprofit organizations. The Los Alamos Community Foundation currently stewards 13 local endowed funds and has total assets of just over $950,000. For more information about the Los Alamos Community Foundation, visit www.losalamoscf.org.
(LACF News) – Diversity, equity, and inclusion are inherently interrelated, but are also distinct concepts. DEI matters in the workplace, especially in New Mexico where we have many diverse populations, and our work often involves community engagement that will impact diverse communities. The Los Alamos Community Foundation is offering a free interactive virtual workshop on January 20, 9:00 – 10:30 am, that is designed to support you creating deeper self-awareness and to help you chart a path for where you and your organization would like to go. Everyone has a unique experience when it comes to DEI. There are no perfect answers or responses. This will be the first of multiple sessions intended to open the door for future exploration, conversations, and learning.
This workshop will be facilitated by Ian Esquibel, an Albuquerque-based consultant who brings rich professional experience in the philanthropic and nonprofit sectors, specializing in community-based, cross-sector, and cross-functional facilitation and planning. Prior to consulting, he served at the helm of the New Mexico Learning Alliance, an organization created to support dialogue on education issues at both the local and state levels by working in partnership with local community organizations and networks of education reformers.
Title: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Practices for Nonprofit Organizations: A Community Conversation
Date: Thursday, January 20, 2022
Time: 9:00 – 10:30 am MT
Structure: Virtual
Cost: Free (advance registration required)
Register here: losalamoscf.org/ticket
About the Los Alamos Community Foundation: Established in 2015, the focus of the Los Alamos Community Foundation is to improve the quality of life in our community by inspiring, facilitating, and supporting enduring philanthropy, and building the capacity and success of our local nonprofit organizations. The Los Alamos Community Foundation currently stewards 13 local endowed funds and has total assets of more than $950,000. For more information about the Los Alamos Community Foundation, visit www.losalamoscf.org.