Community foundations inspire philanthropy and strengthen communities.

Community Foundations of Florida (CFF), a member network of FPN, represents 25 community foundations working together to promote philanthropy in our neighborhoods and throughout Florida. These foundations hold more than $2.95 billion in charitable assets and give $310 million each year to support the vital work of nonprofits in our communities.

Individuals, families and businesses create charitable funds that help local communities to meet the challenges of changing times. Community foundations invest, administer, and steward charitable assets based on a set of rigorous national standards.

Each Florida community foundation is a nonprofit, tax-exempt charitable organization created by and for the people of a particular geographic area and overseen by Boards of Directors comprised of volunteer community leaders. We are here to help donors make a positive impact on their community, now... and forever

Florida's community foundations connect people who care with causes that matter to make a difference in their communities.

Each Florida community foundation offers a simple, powerful and highly personal approach to charitable giving. Across the state, donors and their professional advisors—attorneys, accountants, financial planners, insurance agents, and others—choose to work with their local community foundation to meet their charitable goals while gaining maximum tax advantage for their giving.

The first community foundation was founded in Cleveland, Ohio in 1914. There are now more than 750 operating in urban and rural areas throughout the United States. The community foundation model has also taken hold around the world with more than 1,700 internationally.

Each Florida community foundation offers a simple, powerful and highly personal approach to charitable giving. Across the state, donors and their professional advisors - attorneys, accountants, financial planners, insurance agents, and others - choose to work with their local community foundation to meet their charitable goals while gaining maximum tax advantage for their giving

Our Work

Community foundations provide a simple, powerful, and highly personal approach to giving through:

• Personalized service. Florida's community foundations make giving easy, flexible, and effective, accepting a wide variety of gifts, including cash, stocks, property, bequests, and more. Donors can leave personal legacies by establishing a charitable fund in their name or the name of a loved one, and they can be personally involved in recommending the uses of their gift.
• Local expertise. Our professional staff has an in-depth understanding of the issues, opportunities, and resources that shape your community. We can help donors learn more about the agencies and programs that impact the areas they care about most.
• Community leadership. We invest in the long term and bring people and organizations together, convening diverse voices to address local issues and needs. Our business is community building.

Quick Facts

• Granted $310 million in 2018 and administered $2.95 billion in charitable assets.
• Comprised of 25 community foundations statewide.
• Know their communities—what the needs are and how to address them.
• Focused on solving the most challenging problems and improving the quality of life in our communities.
• Share your interests and care about the future of Florida.
• Provide strong stewardship of charitable resources.
• Connect and strengthen the nonprofit sector.
• Partner with individuals, families and businesses to implement their charitable vision to bring the greatest community impact.
• Led philanthropic response to recent federally declared disasters with more than $10.1 million raised and donated to support disaster relief work, primarily in Florida but also to support recovery efforts in Houston, in the Carolinas and in the Bahamas.
• Include 7 of the largest 100 community foundations in the country based on asset size (2016 Columbus Survey).
• Most members voluntarily adhere to and are compliant with the Council on Foundations National Standards for U.S. Community Foundations, a strict peer-review process that assures members meet the most rigorous standards in philanthropy.

Florida's community foundations can support you and your clients at every step in the charitable giving process.

We can help you:

• Identify your clients' charitable giving interests and motivations
• Match personal charitable interests with tax planning needs
• Create and implement charitable plans that are integrated into major business, personal, and financial decisions
• Facilitate complex forms of giving and execute technical giving instruments (such as charitable remainder trusts)
• Deliver grantmaking expertise and a range of administrative services related to charitable giving

 Ten reasons advisors welcome community foundations as a partner in helping their clients:

1. We enable you to broaden your practice by building on our philanthropic expertise.
2. We provide highly personalized service tailored to each individual's charitable and financial interests.
3. We are a local organization with deep roots in the community.
4. Our professional program staff's knowledge on community issues and needs is available to donors on request.
5. Our donor-advised funds help people invest in the charities they already care about, and learn about new causes to invest in.
6. We accept a wide variety of assets, and can facilitate even the most complex forms of giving.
7. We offer maximum tax advantage under state and federal law.
8. We multiply the impact of gift dollars by pooling them with other gifts and grants.
9. We offer permanence to donors, through endowment funds and multi-generational involvement.
10. We are community leaders, convening agencies and coordinating resources to create positive change.