Our Foundation

Build, Enhance & Sustain the Community

Our experienced staff and dedicated trustees are committed to matching donor support with community need through innovative, solution-based community investments aimed at positive impact.

For 70 years, we have grown and stewarded community resources to ensure greater capacity for future needs and unexpected challenges.

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Our Mission

Engage

Engage

We partner with donors and community organizations to determine funding solutions to residents' needs, advancing and enhancing community development.

Invest

Invest

We maximize donor impact through long-term stewardship, and commit funds and resources to nonprofit partner organizations for the greatest possible community impact.

Lead

Lead

We provide leadership to bring community partners together for collaborative impact, acting as a trusted advocate that can bridge differences and build meaningful coalitions.

Annual Figures as of December 31, 2023

$195M
Total Assets
$15.2M
Donations
1,230
Donors
520
Active Funds
$11M
Community Investments
  • $195M
    Total Assets
  • $15.2M
    Donations
  • 1,230
    Donors
  • 520
    Active Funds
  • $11M
    Community Investments
Our Story is Your Story

Strengthening Our Community Together

Strengthening Our Community Together
Who We Are

We Are Here to Better Our Community

Through nonprofit partnerships we work to strengthen our community, enhancing neighborhood vibrancy, creating jobs, educating, and addressing racial equity and social justice challenges.

In Their Own Words

In Their Own Words

“My wife and I had talked about establishing a foundation, and as we discussed it more, we began to see all the potential challenges involved. How do you manage it? How do you decide what agencies to give grants to without the ability to supervise it all? The more challenges that we considered, the more it seemed that the Community Foundation was the place that could handle all of these matters and handle them very well.”

Donald Van Waes, Fundholder

“It has been an unbelievable relationship. We’ve been able to figure out a way to utilize the Community Foundation’s resources for some great projects that have turned into stories that we’ve been able to tell in various ways about how amazing the organization has been in helping us reach our goal of building community.”

Kevin Crosley, President/CEO, Arc Herkimer

“Every day, I’m proud to be part of a community so rich in promise and possibility—as we turn challenges into progress. Together we can realize our collective potential so that everyone’s opportunity to succeed contributes to a bright future for all.”

Alicia Fernandez Dicks, President/CEO
(3 Total)

More to Explore...

A Message From Our Board Chair
A Message From Our Board Chair

The Community Foundation has spent the past 10 years — and even to this day — learning, listening, and having ongoing dialogue with neighborhood residents, stakeholders, and partners to collectively turn challenges into progress. We have been asking our residents directly what they want their neighborhood to be in the future, and we are listening.

Connor Arthur Lynskey Memorial Scholarship Fund Accepting Applications
Connor Arthur Lynskey Memorial Scholarship Fund Accepting Applications

Each year, scholarships are awarded to local students in honor of Hinckley, NY teen Connor Lynskey through the Connor Arthur Lynskey Memorial Scholarship Fund at the Community Foundation of Herkimer and Oneida Counties.

 New Fund Gives Unprecedented Opportunity to Cornhill Youth
New Fund Gives Unprecedented Opportunity to Cornhill Youth

The Community Foundation of Herkimer and Oneida Counties announces the launch of SHINE, a collaboration with Johnson Park Center and Notre Dame Schools made possible by an anonymous donor’s endowed designated fund at the Foundation. SHINE offers opportunities for academic and personal growth to children of low-income households at Notre Dame Schools at no-cost. Eligible students are identified through Johnson Park Center programs.

Helpful Harvest Fund Awards Over $70,000 to Human Service Organizations
Helpful Harvest Fund Awards Over $70,000 to Human Service Organizations

Through the Helpful Harvest Grant Round, supported by the Helpful Harvest Fund, the Community Foundation of Herkimer and Oneida Counties awarded $71,849 to 50 human service organizations including food pantries, soup kitchens, and shelters to help alleviate food insecurity and support increased need around the holidays and colder months.

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Community Foundation
2608 Genesee Street
Utica, NY 13502

Hours

Mon
8 AM - 5PM
Tue
8 AM - 5PM
Wed
8 AM - 5PM
Thu
8 AM - 5PM
Fri
8 AM - 5PM
Sat
8 AM - 5PM
Sun
8 AM - 5PM