Erie Community Foundation

The mission of The Erie Community Foundation is to improve the quality of life for all in our region by evaluating and addressing community issues, by building permanent charitable endowments and by promoting philanthropic and community leadership.

The Erie Community Foundation trace its roots to the creation of The Erie Endowment in 1935 by Elisha H. Mack, co-founder of The Boston Store.

The Tax Reform Act of 1969 created important distinctions between private foundations and public charities. Enoch Filer, Esq., Ed Doll, Charles Bracken, Judge William Hirt and other civic leaders of that era, worked to obtain IRS approval for a public charity to encourage others to emulate Mr. Mack. This occurred in 1971. ECF trustees and trustees of The Erie Endowment were identical. 

Generally speaking, there have been five major chapters in the lifespan of The Erie Community Foundation.  While dates are approximate, and there is significant overlap, its major chapters include:

1. All Volunteer; Pre-1990
2. Rapid Growth; 1990 – 2000
3. Professionalize; 2001 – 2006
4. Shaping Tomorrow; 2006 – 2015
5. Transformational Philanthropy; 2016 - Today

Many significant events and activities occurred within these chapters.  A few historical highlights follow:

• Chapter One: All Volunteer
  • Edward C. Doll, owner of Lovell Manufacturing, was a colleague of Mr. Mack. He served on the board of The Erie Endowment and as volunteer administrator of The Erie Community Foundation until his death in 1990. Charles H. Bracken and William F. Grant also provided important volunteer leadership during this time period.
• Chapter Two: Rapid Growth
  • In 1990, The Erie Community Foundation hired Michael L. Batchelor as its first paid executive director. Charles H. Bracken served as volunteer president. At that time, 53 named endowment funds within The Erie Community Foundation had a total market value of $20 million. Total gifts for the year were $129,000.
  • In 1992, offices of The Erie Community Foundation moved from The G. Daniel Baldwin Building to the historic Hoskinson House. Built in 1841 by William and James Hoskinson, the Federal Style building is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. The Hoskinson House pre-dates many other historic buildings including The Erie Club, The Erie County Courthouse and Gannon University Old Main. James Hoskinson served as mayor of Erie in 1857.
  • In 1995, Charles H. Bracken was named chairman of The Erie Community Foundation and Michael L. Batchelor was named president. In 1996, Albert F. Duval served one year as chairman. He retired from the board in 1997 when Ray L. McGarvey was elected chair. Mr. McGarvey served as chair until 2002, when M. Peter Scibetta, M.D. began his term as chair. In 2006, William M. Hilbert, Sr. became chair, and B.J. Lechner in 2009.
  • From 1990 to 1998, The Erie Community Foundation was a two person office. An administrative assistant was added in 1998, and a CPA controller in 2002, with the latter position upgraded to CFO. A vice president of programs was added in 2005, and a vice president of stewardship in 2008.
  • In 2000, The Erie Community Foundation launched The Nonprofit Partnership (NPP). The mission of this separate, membership-based organization is to provide high-quality training opportunities for nonprofit boards and senior staff.  In the fall of 2006, Bob Wooler was named director of the NPP.  The Erie Community Foundation remains a major funder of NPP and we share some office space.
  • In 2000, ECF began discussions with neighboring communities to establish a regional affiliate network and now manage community foundations serving Corry, North East, Union City and Findley Lake. 
• Chapter Three: Professionalize
  • In 2003, the Foundation contracted with an independent investment consulting firm, The Fund Evaluation Group, to assist with the development of asset allocation and spending models. They also help evaluate manager performance against agreed-upon benchmarks.
  • In 2004, ECF launched The Elisha H. Mack Society to recognize individuals who have included The Erie Community Foundation in their estate plans.
  • In 2005, The Foundation launched the first proactive and strategic grantmaking initiative, The Earned Income Tax Credit program. ECF continues to support this program which transition to United Way of Erie County as Erie Free Taxes.
  • In 2005, The Erie Community Foundation established a record 44 new endowments-nearly one a week. Since 1990, new gifts have averaged over $7 million a year.
  • In 2006, The Erie Community Foundation made 1,000 donor advised, designated and competitive grants totaling $7.6 million. New gifts totaled $6,997,000. The market value of Foundation assets reached $123 million. 
  • In September of 2006, the Foundation launched a new website, www.eriecommunityfoundation.org.  The site links to The Nonprofit Partnership site. Black Family Foundation provided support for updates in 2009. Online access to fund accounts and a searchable nonprofit database are now available.
  • Also in 2006, the Foundation was recognized for having organizational and financial practices that are in accordance with the National Standards for U.S. Community Foundations.
  • The Foundation received a national award, the Wilmer Shields Rich Award for Excellence in Communication, Public Information Campaign.
• Chapter Four: Shaping Tomorrow
  • Because of new gifts to The Erie Community Foundation and strong investment gains, the Foundation initiated the “Helping Today…Shaping Tomorrow” grantmaking in 2007.
    • Helping Today grants improve the quality of life for all in Erie's region by ensuring a vital nonprofit sector. Helping Today grants generally have a ceiling of up to $30,000 (some exceptions), and a duration of one year.
    • Shaping Tomorrow grants are issue-focused, with a concentration on long-term community problem solving.  Funding goes to multi-year collaboratives working on systemic issues of interest.
  • In the spring of 2006, the estate of Mrs. Margaret Spaeder gifted a major bequest.
  • In the fall of 2007, $100 million dollars was given to the Foundation to be placed in the Anonymous Friend Fund. Forty-six local charities were encouraged to establish endowments with the Foundation for perpetuity purposes.
  • In 2007, The Erie Community Foundation made 1,321 donor advised, designated and competitive grants totaling $7.6 million, There were 2,344 gifts totaling $10.7 million.  The market value of Foundation assets reached $153 million, up 9.1% from 2006. All of these numbers exclude the historic $100 million Anonymous Friend donation.
  • In 2007, the Erie Women’s Fund (EWF) was established, with a mission of "Empowering Women & Families."
  • “Community Connections” publications on Community College, Poverty and the Status of The Non-Profit Sector were published in 2007, followed by additional publications on increasing access to Health Care and Early Childhood Education.
  • In 2007, the Gaps Analysis Committee formed. Our region has debated the need for a community college since the 1960s. With the help of a consultant provided by the Deputy Secretary of Workforce Development, the committee analyzed regional occupational demands and workforce supply.  Establishment of a community college was the committee’s number one recommendation.
  • As of 2008, over 525 different charitable endowments operate within The Erie Community Foundation, with an asset value of over $250 million.  This includes a $100M receivable from Anonymous Friend, some of which will be distributed to dozens of local nonprofits. 
  • In July 2008, The Erie Community Foundation relocated to 459 West Sixth, Erie, PA 16507, the historic Siegel-McDougle house.
  • The Erie Community Foundation routinely ranks within the top 10% of the nation’s 700+ community foundations in terms of market value, annual gifts and annual grants. In 2008, The Chronicle of Philanthropy included ECF in its list of the 400 most successful fundraising organizations in the United States.    
  • In 2009, the Council of Foundations awarded The Erie Community Foundation with a GOLD Wilmer Shields Rich Award for Excellence in Communications for its public policy campaign.
  • Each year the Foundation presents The Edward C. Doll Community Service Award which recognizes an outstanding philanthropic community member(s), whoes volunteer experience and personal philanthropy mirrors the life and work of Ed Doll.  Each year the Ed Doll endowment produces interest, which the recipients distribute to his or her favored charities.
  • In 2010, ECF launched Erie Vital Signs a 10-year effort to identify and monitor key trends in our region. CFInsights developed a benchmarking peer group for ECF. Trustees increasingly engaged. Proactive work has leveraged at five million in new dollars for our community.
  • In 2011, ECF celebrated its 75^th anniversary with Erie Gives, an extraordinarily successful day of online giving, and by collaborating with many partners to develop the Bayfront Park and Greenway.  Nearly 650 different endowments operating under the administrative umbrella of The Erie Community Foundation.
  • In 2012, ECF had its second-best year asset development year ever with $14.8M received.  This was only topped by our Anonymous Friend year.  ECF has averaged nearly $10M a year in new gifts.
  • In 2012, a partnership with Erie County Gaming Revenue Authority (ECGRA) leads to establishment of a significant endowment for regional assets.   
  • In 2013, ECF agreed to focus resources on helping Community Health Net obtain the needed “change of scope” so it could realize higher reimbursement rates for Wayne SBHC, and so it could expand to additional sites.  Erie Gives raised $1.7M in a single day. ECF received United Way of Erie County “Live United” award. Market value reached over $190M.
  • In 2014, ECF's market value reached $210 million.
  • In 2015, ECF partnered with Erie County Gaming Revenue Authority to invest $1 million in four Shaping Tomorrow projects.
  • In 2015, the Foundation created the Susan Hirt Hagen Fund for Transformational Philanthropy.  Plans were developed to renovate the Carriage House into the Susan Hirt Hagen Center for Transformational Philanthropy.
• Chapter Five: Transformational Philanthropy
  • In 2016, ECF partnered with United Way of Erie County to fund a $1.2 million anti-violence initiative.  Erie Gives continued to grow by $500,000 per year, surpassing $3.4 million in 2016.
  • ECF partnered with ECGRA and The Susan Hirt Hagen Fund for Transformational Philanthropy in 2016 to make an historic $10 million commitment to support a downtown Innovation District focused on cyber security and safety, a County-sponsored Community College, Community Schools and a pilot neighborhood revitalization project. 
  • In 2017, Erie County Council voted to be the sponsor of a local community college.  A CEO for the Innovation District was hired.  ECF spent a significant amount of time working to develop The Erie Downtown Development Corporation and approved a $2.5 million commitment to the organization, pending review of final documents.  New gifts exceeded $27 million, its highest “non-Anonymous Friend” year.  Trustees also approved “Transformational Philanthropy 2.0,” which launched in January, 2018.
  • In 2018, The Erie Community Foundation was honored by Hamot Health Foundation in January and the Erie Regional Chamber and Growth Partnership in the fall. ECF also released its 5-year, $30 million grantmaking and community leadership framework, including a $10 million commitment to future mission related Investments.  New gifts exceeded $25 million.

• "www.ErieCommunityFoundation.org".

• The Erie Community Foundation
• ECF announced $1.3 million in designated and $465,000 in undesignated gifts to local Erie benevolences in August 2006