Community Leadership

community leadership FUND

Your support brings our mission to life

Contributions to our Community Leadership Fund (CLF) enable the work we do here at the Foundation each day. With your support, we will continue to be a voice for the vulnerable, a place where donors come together to learn and to give, and a trusted resource for thoughtful, vetted grantmaking. Without question, some of the strongest communities around the country are those with a thriving, resilient community foundation at the intersection. Help keep northern New Mexico on that list with a gift to CLF today.

community services

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community services

Building a more vibrant, healthy & resilient region

Our Community Leadership Fund supports the Santa Fe Community Foundation's general operations and underwrites many of the services we provide that allow us to build strong connections in the community and stay in tune with local needs. Some of these community services include:

Responding to urgent & emerging needs
The Santa Fe Community Foundation is called upon to respond swiftly to emergencies by mobilizing our staff, network of partners, and donors — most recently through our Fund for the Flood (2018), Fund for Refugees (2019), COVID-19 response work (2020), and ongoing relief and recovery efforts following 2022’s devastating wildfire season.
Nonprofit Learning Hub
We offer workshops and other technical assistance through our Learning Hub to help local nonprofits increase efficiency and effectiveness. Topics include Board Development, Financial Oversight, Fundraising, Planned Giving, and much more. Each year, the Hub hosts over 1,000 participants.
Dollars4Schools
On average, our Dollars4Schools grants out $45-$55k each year, funding teachers directly for classroom projects at over 30 Santa Fe public schools and providing students in need with necessities like school supplies, backpacks, and winter coats. Support enables the Foundation to administer this program free of charge — ensuring 100% of donations go to local classrooms.
Empty Stocking Fund
The Santa Fe Community Foundation dedicates more than 500 hours of staff time required to operate the Empty Stocking Fund, which provides hundreds of individuals and families who have experienced significant financial challenges with support for housing, car repairs, utility bills, and more each holiday season.
Community Grants
We provide funding for local nonprofits working to improve outcomes in six fields of interest — Civic & Economic Opportunities, Health & Human Services, Animal Welfare, Arts & Culture, Education, and Environment — during two strong and democratic community grant cycles each year. Community support enables us to attend site visits, build relationships with our nonprofit grantees, and manage as many as 50 volunteers who devote over 2,000 hours to the vetting process.
Giving Circles
The Foundation stewards and supports key identity-based funds, including the Native American Advised Fund, Envision Fund (LGBTQ+), and Empower! Black Futures Community Fund. Donations help underwrite over 1,000 hours of staff time that we devote each year to these important groups.
Giving Together Catalog
Each year, we publish the Giving Together catalog, a summary of all proposals we receive each grant cycle from nonprofit organizations in our funding region. We share this catalog with our fund advisors and invite them to support the organizations that inspire them. Since its inception in 2010, Giving Together has generated more than $8 million in additional grants and served as a valuable resource for donor education.
Piñon Awards
The Piñon Awards are the Santa Fe Community Foundation's most time-honored tradition and our largest community event of the year. Since 1987, the awards have honored and supported local nonprofit organizations for their invaluable contributions to the community. Contributions to our Community Leadership Fund underwrite the awards ceremony as well as each awardee’s grant and complimentary marketing video.
Philanthropic Guidance
The SFCF Development & Donor Relations team is a resource for the entire community. As a strong partner in philanthropy, we are here to help New Mexico residents make a lasting impact across our beautiful state with a tailored and effective giving strategy that supports the causes they are most passionate about.
Community Convening & Advocacy
The Santa Fe Community Foundation plays a key role in addressing our community’s needs like food insecurity and affordable housing — both now and in the future. In addition to building endowments that ensure grants are always available to support our region, we convene diverse voices and groups to work on solutions to local issues, and foster greater giving across northern New Mexico by uplifting volunteerism, community service, and donating.

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