Earlier this year, Hampton Roads Community Foundation celebrated its 75th anniversary with an event at the Chesapeake Conference Center.
“Now more than ever, America’s non-profit sector is an absolutely critical component in the democratic and economic framework that defines our nation,” said Dr. Deborah M. DiCroce, Foundation president and CEO. Her remarks came at the beginning of the luncheon event, which featured Eugene Robinson, a Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist, who at the time, was with The Washington Post.
More than 600 people from across the region, from across demographic groups, and representing countless organizations, attended the event. Donors and recipients, alike, attended. The diversity of the audience was not a surprise as the Foundation has made it its mission to “make life better in Hampton Roads through civic leadership, philanthropy, and grantmaking . . . for a thriving community with equitable opportunity for all.”
Based in Hampton Roads, Michelle Washington, the Foundation’s vice president for communications and marketing, notes that “everyone who works here, lives here.” The result is that the mission to “make life better” resonates with the staff, as well as with donors and fund holders.
Hampton Roads Community Foundation currently has more than $525 million in assets and has distributed more than $427 million in grants and scholarships since its founding in 1950. In 2024, the Foundation awarded more than $33.3 million in grants and scholarships.
“Our focus is on partnering with donors from all walks of life to improve life in southeastern Virginia,” states the Foundation’s website. The Foundation accomplishes this through grants, scholarships and leadership initiatives.
Touching all aspects of the community – funding for education, healthcare, culture, environmental issues, and more, one specific example of the Foundation’s impact is through a Foundation grant for Jewish Family Service.
“Hampton Roads Community Foundation gave us funding to help increase our ability to provide mental health counseling to children throughout Hampton Roads,” says Kelly Burroughs, JFS CEO. The funding, she says, which is being spread over three years, enabled JFS to hire an additional therapist to fill the growing mental health needs of area children.
Whether a prospective donor, current fund holder, a nonprofit staff member, a community leader, or a student seeking a scholarship, learn more about connecting with the Foundation at HamptonRoadsCF.org.
Hampton Roads Community Foundation celebrates 75 years of philanthropic service to the community
