“Businesses and organizations have anniversaries all the time, so why does this one matter? Because it is a celebration of something that belongs to our entire community, that was built by our community,” said CFNEM Executive Director Patrick Heraghty. “With a timeline of forever, 50 years is an early milestone for an organization that supports everyone — our parents, grandparents, children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and beyond. And in those 50 years, so much has been accomplished. That is worth celebrating!”

Over the past 50 years, CFNEM has awarded more than $55 million in grants to Northeast Michigan nonprofits, and in scholarships to students from its service area, which includes Alpena, Alcona, Cheboygan, Crawford, Iosco, Montmorency, Ogemaw, Oscoda, and Presque Isle counties. It has accumulated more than 530 funds from generous individuals, families and businesses who chose to invest in their community through charitable giving. Most of the funds are permanently endowed, preserving resources for current and future generations to address needs as they evolve.

There are more than 900 community foundations in the United States, and 170 of those are in Michigan. At $76.5 million in total assets, the Community Foundation for Northeast Michigan ranks as the 16th largest in the state, and covers one of the largest geographic territories, second only to the Community Foundation of the Upper Peninsula. CFNEM serves as the administrative arm for three geographic affiliate foundations that were added to its service area in 1997, increasing the number of counties it serves from four to nine. Those affiliates include the Iosco County Community Foundation, North Central Michigan Community Foundation, and Straits Area Community Foundation.

“Our staff and board are incredibly grateful to every person in our 50-year history who chose to invest in Northeast Michigan’s future, whether through the creation of a new fund, a planned gift, or through a donation to an existing fund,” says Heraghty. “Those funds provide an avenue for individuals to support their community with gifts of all sizes, and for so many different causes. Generosity and rich stories of caring are the building blocks of the Foundation, allowing CFNEM to be a community foundation for all.”

Courtesy Image Here is a timeline of the CFNEM’s progress over the past 50 years.

Over the years, CFNEM’s impact in the region can be seen or felt in many ways, such as:

∫ The Youth Advisory Council program, which is fostering new generations of philanthropists;

∫ The Northeast Michigan Women’s Giving Circle, established in 2006 to engage women in our region in collective philanthropy and support issues important to women;

∫ Community Impact Grants that touch every corner of the CFNEM service area for food pantries, parks and playgrounds, schools, youth development projects, arts programs, museums, animal shelters, human service organizations, health initiatives, environmental stewardship programs, and more;

∫ Leadership in the 2020 U.S. Census to help ensure an accurate count of Northeast Michigan residents;

Courtesy Photo Staff members at the Community Foundation for Northeast Michigan include, from left, Christine Hitch, marketing and communications director, Denise McKenna, executive assistant, Patrick Heraghty, executive director, Jennifer Dingman, program director, and DeeAnn Karos, finance director.

∫ Leading the Giving Tuesday movement locally through its Giving Tuesday Northeast Michigan campaign, which has raised more than $1.8 million for nonprofits since 2015;

∫ Quickly establishing the Urgent Needs Fund in local response to the global COVID-19 pandemic, providing $174,000 in grants to nonprofits to address the unexpected needs that arose in 2020 and 2021;

∫ Providing a scholarship program that has grown to award more than $400,000 annually to local students.

In celebration of its 50th anniversary, Heraghty said the Community Foundation is planning several gifts to Northeast Michigan as a “thank you” and additional investment in the region. In June 2024, CFNEM established a new, permanently endowed Lake Huron Fund with $25,000 that will support the health of Lake Huron and its watershed through grants in Northeast Michigan; in May 2024, CFNEM provided a $24,000 gift to the Youth Advisory Councils across the region to support youth grantmaking, $12,000 of which was funded through the Foundation’s Dolores and Leonard Roznowski Fund; a $10,000 gift to Thunder Bay Arts will go toward the creation and installation of a new sculpture along Alpena’s bi-path that celebrates the spirit of giving and community; and more proactive grants will be announced throughout the Foundation’s 50th anniversary year.

“It is always fun to look back on our history to see where we have been, but it is important to look ahead, as well,” says Heraghty. “The Community Foundation will outlive all of us, so looking to the future and preparing for that is an important part of celebrating a milestone like this one.”

Heraghty said the CFNEM board and staff are in the final stages of a new strategic plan that happens to coincide with the Foundation’s 50th anniversary and is part of their efforts to ensure that while the past is celebrated, the focus is on the future.

“As a Foundation, we are excited to begin working on this plan,” he says. “There is no doubt CFNEM will grow stronger as a result, and strengthen our capabilities to address the dynamic and varied needs of the many communities in our region.”

The Community Foundation has released a commemorative 50th anniversary publication, which can be viewed online at cfnem.org.

“We’re a pretty dynamic organization, so we can fill in a lot of gaps, and provide a lot of support in a lot of different areas within the community,” Heraghty added. “Also, the fact that we’re a nonpolitical, nonreligious organization makes us a really great convener to bring people around important topics and community challenges or needs.”

“We are one of the only types of organizations that has the ability to be flexible and act quickly to our community’s changing needs, and that’s something that is going to benefit everybody today and forever,” said Christine Hitch, CFNEM marketing and communications director.