Greater Lowell Community Foundation

Personal Stories

Belinda Juran and Evan Schapiro: Helping to Maintain and Grow the Merrimack Valley’s Rich Cultural Tradition

Belinda Juran and Evan Schapiro

As residents of the Merrimack Valley for the past 25 years, Belinda and Evan often took advantage of the rich and diverse cultural opportunities that the region offered. Unlike Boston, where the scene is dominated by large cultural institutions with a large donor base, the Merrimack Valley's arts scene typically consists of a more diverse group of smaller and less well-known organizations. So, Evan and Belinda were especially surprised to learn that the Merrimack Valley did not have a permanently endowed Arts Fund dedicated to the support of local cultural organizations. MORE

Peter S. Stamas: Dedicated to Education in Lowell for 17 Years

Peter Stamas

Peter’s Passion: Education and civic involvement.
As headmaster of Lowell High School for 17 years, Peter shaped the minds of Lowell’s future leaders and led by example. He believed community services was the way to better our region’s quality of life. More...

News

Greater Lowell Community Foundation in Top Philanthropic Tier Nationally
Local Organization Meets Rigorous Standards for Quality and Accountability
Lowell, MA, October 18, 2006 – The Greater Lowell Community Foundation recently received notification that it has met the nation’s highest philanthropic standards for operational quality, integrity and accountability. The notice comes from the Council on Foundations, a national professional association based in Washington, D.C. “This is similar to the Good Housekeeping Seal for community foundations,” said Steve Gunderson, Council on Foundations president and chief executive officer. "It says that the Greater Lowell Community Foundation has demonstrated its commitment to accountability, excellence and service."
The National Standards for U.S. Community Foundations Program requires community foundations to document their policies for donor services, investment management, grantmaking and administration. With more than 700 community foundations nationwide, the program is designed to provide quality assurance to donors, as well as to their legal and financial advisors. Full Press Release (pdf document)
Two New Community Health Funds to Serve Nashoba Valley
In a nationally unprecedented transaction, two neighboring community foundations are sharing more than $3.5 million to support community health needs in the Nashoba Valley through two new funds.
The funds are generated by the sale of the former nonprofit Deaconess Nashoba Hospital in Ayer to a for-profit corporation. The laws of the Commonwealth require that the proceeds of such “hospital conversions” must stay in the nonprofit field. The trustees of Deaconess Nashoba Hospital recommended that the Greater Lowell Community Foundation and the Community Foundation of North Central Massachusetts receive the endowments and other net assets. In July, the Attorney General’s Public Charity Division approved the transaction.
The two funds are the Nashoba Valley Community Health Care Fund and the Nashoba Valley Professional Health Care Education Fund. Ninety percent of the proceeds will go into the Health Care Fund and ten percent will go into the Professional Health Care Education Fund. The funds will generate approximately $150,000 annually in grants for a variety of health care initiatives. David Kronberg, Executive Director of the Greater Lowell Community Foundation, stated that the first order of business is to prioritize the region’s community health care needs and establish a Nashoba Valley -based grantmaking committee.
"We look forward to working with the Nashoba Valley Medical Center (NVMC), the new for-profit hospital," says Kronberg, "but since NVMC cannot give tax deductions and take charitable contributions, the two new funds now offer residents a new way to support community health care needs in Nashoba Valley. Families and businesses can contribute to the funds or establish and name their own community health funds and specify the own priorities to enhance the quality of care in the region."
Read more about the Greater Lowell Community Foundation.

2007 Greater Lowell Community Foundation Fact Sheet(pdf file).
Each year Greater Lowell Community Foundation publishes a report chronicling our work to improve the quality of life in the Greater Lowell, Nashoba Valley, and Merrimack Valley regions. The reports review our major goals and progress in detail, focusing on our special initiatives, donations, grant-making [link to grant history pag], and financial profile. Download the 2006 Annual Report (pdf document).
In addition, you can review third-party certified information about the Community Foundation at Guidestar, a nonprofit organization that seeks to connect donors, foundations, and nonprofit organizations through objective, accurate information. Click here to view the GLCF page (Free registration required).