Category: General

I’m Curt Detjen, President and CEO of the Community Foundation for the Fox Valley Region, just checking in with everyone to make sure you’re getting along well. We’ve been honoring the Safe at Home order for the past several weeks, and this weather isn’t doing our moods any favors. I wanted to encourage you to […]

Big Brothers Big Sisters of East Central Wisconsin found innovative ways to be together and have fun during the Safe At Home restrictions. Now that those are lifted, most “Bigs” and “Littles” are safely together again.   By Johnna Van Deurzen, Development Coordinator, Big Brothers Big Sisters of East Central Wisconsin When COVID-19 first started, […]

By: Hope Schaefer, Executive Director, Nonprofit Leadership Initiative It may be September, but end-of-year giving appeals are coming, and at the Nonprofit Leadership Initiative we are thinking about how we tell our stories. Are we telling empowering stories? Are we telling them in an ethical way? Storytelling is embedded into all that we do in […]

Think for a moment about the last time you encountered someone experiencing homelessness. What did you feel? Did you ask yourself what the person experiencing homelessness might feel? During National Hunger and Homelessness Week, I hope we’ll take the answer to heart. Together, we can become a compassionate, creative Fox Cities that collectively solves homelessness. […]

By Michelle Schuler, Microsoft; Founder WIT Wisconsin and Community Foundation Board member The people aspect of technology has always inspired me. And now – more than ever – I am amazed at the way it is acting as the glue that holds us together, as we navigate a global health crisis. As a woman in tech, I feel a personal responsibility to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. As a […]

This summer’s Fox Cities LIFE Study finds our population is growing, while racial diversity of the area is increasing — although slowly. The study breaks down the U.S. Census Bureau report showing the largest shifts is in the Hispanic population. In fact, Hispanics make up the largest minority group in Northeast Wisconsin. Hispanic and Latino residents of […]

The STAR Initiative with the Boys and Girls Clubs of the Fox Valley was created after a CHAT plunge focusing on the African American/Black experience in the Fox Cities.  Through dedication to community partnership and advocacy, STAR has worked with the Appleton Area School District to provide academic, social, and cultural support for Black middle […]

By Ann Engelhard, Vice President, Donor Services & Gift Planning, Community Foundation The Thompson Center on Lourdes is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the mental, physical and emotional well being of older adults in the community.  Recently, I had the pleasure of attending a breakfast at the center highlighting its growth and programming. The center […]

Most symphony attendees sit quietly in their seats during orchestral performances. That did not happen yesterday. Hundreds of local third, fourth and fifth-graders used their voices and recorders to help an orchestra make beautiful music in Appleton, thanks in part to the generosity of a Fox Valley family. A grant to the Fox Cities Performing […]

Nonprofit Leadership Initiative’s Board Connect events help community members interested in volunteering at a leadership level connect with nonprofits that have opportunities to serve. Kristin Cates attended several Board Connect events and shares her experience. By Kristin Cates, Marketing Coordinator, PALS Program Ever since attending the first Board Connect event, I’ve found more and more […]

Happy Administrative Professionals Day to our spectacular team! This special day recognizes the valuable professionals who keep the office running smoothly. A little history: The observance first launched in 1952 when the U.S. Secretary of Commerce proclaimed June 4th as the designated “National Secretaries Day.” The name changed to Administrative Professionals Day in 2000 and […]

Photo via Center for Disaster Philanthropy. If you’re interested in a trustworthy way to help the victims from Hurricane Dorian, community foundations throughout the southeast have activated disaster relief funds to help those in the Bahamas and the eastern United States affected by the storm. Hurricane Dorian made landfall in the Bahamas on Sunday, September […]