give to a specific cause
Make a lasting difference in an area close to your heart.
Many of the Foundation’s endowed funds are earmarked for special purposes through field of interest funds. Our active funding areas include arts and culture, basic human needs, boys and young men, community development, early childhood, education, environment, family support and counseling, health, housing, women and girls, workforce development, and youth. Gifts to any of them increase our ability to support community interests in that area now and in the future. Most of our field of interest funds feed into the annual responsive grants cycle.
Donors can also create or contribute to endowments for specific organizations. This option allows you to provide for an organization important to you without creating additional financial burdens for the organization.
named fund levels
With a minimum of $10,000 you can establish a fund aligned with one of our active funding areas. With a $50,000 gift, we can establish a new field of interest fund. We can commit to increasing ECF funding in a chosen area only if the available resources justify a dedicated grants cycle, with a gift of $2 million. To explore the option of establishing a named fund contact Jan Fischer.
current field-of-interest funds
Acorn Fund • Encourages activities to test new ideas of value to our community.
Shawn Patrick Afryl #56 Shoe Fund • Supports under-privileged high school athletes by providing athletic shoes. Read more about Shawn and the fund established in his memory.
All Our Sons • Supports boys and young men as they strive to become responsible members of the community.
Arts in Community Fund • Strengthens Evanston as an extraordinary arts community.
Balkcom Family Fund for Literacy and Affordable Housing • Promotes literacy and affordable housing.
Communityworks Fund • Identifies and supports systematic approaches to strengthen Evanston in areas of early childhood care and education, land use, and workforce training and development. Includes:
Pearl & Sander Davis Fund for Communityworks
Sara Schastok Fund for Communityworks
Cultural Diversity Initiative • Fosters understanding among ethnic and racial groups within early childhood education.
EDN Fund for Early Childhood • Will support grants for high quality early childhood education and the development of children aged 0 to 5.
Leonard Fisher Fund for Nursing Education • Funds continuing education for ICU nurses at Highland Park and Lake Forest Hospitals.
Fund for Women & Girls • Supports grants and community education to empower women and girls.
Green Communities Fund • Encourages area residents to focus attention on environmental protection, reduction of greenhouse gases, resource conservation, and energy efficiency.
Leadership Fund • Develops individuals' leadership skills in diverse groups through exploration of Evanston's assets and challenges. Includes:
Marybeth Schroeder Fund for Leadership
Leadership Chairs Challenge Fund
Lydia Martin Memorial Fund for Children and the Arts • Funds hands-on arts education programs that benefit disadvantaged children and youth.
Lorraine Hairston Morton Fund for Youth • Supports organizations and projects to increase employment and educational opportunities for Evanston youth.
Skokie Community Fund • Resource for the betterment and welfare of Skokie residents.
Sweers' Fund for Children and the Arts • Supports arts education for Evanston youth in grades 6 through 12.
Faith Vilas Fund for Youth • Provides for programs serving youth.
YEA! Harvey Pranian Legacy Fund for the Arts • The Fund preserves the thirty year legacy of YEA! and honors Founder and Project Director, Harvey Pranian. Grants support projects and opportunities to advance the development of Evanston children and youth, pre-school through high school, through the arts.