Trustee Spotlight: Bob Bojanek | Our #1 Fan

Robert Bojanek (better known as Bob) wears many hats within the Community Foundation.

His affiliation with the Community Foundation began around 2014. At this time, Bob had sold his company and was looking to take a portion of the proceeds and place them into a foundation to do some good.

“In looking at the best approach, I was researching starting my own foundation and I quickly realized that didn’t make the most sense for me,” he said. “If we were to go this route, my wife and I wouldn’t really know who to donate to and what the biggest needs in this community were. It was then that we turned to the Community Foundation.”

Bob and his wife, Kathleen, opened a donor-advised fund at the Community Foundation in 2015 called The ShoreLine Group Fund. The fund has since granted over $105,000 to more than 30 organizations. As a donor-advised fund, the couple has discretion over what organizations the fund makes grants to, and they look to the Community Foundation for its expertise in community needs.

“Through this fund, we wanted to do something impactful for the community,” he explained. “The fact that the Community Foundation handles all the administrative tasks associated with having a fund is just the icing on the cake. The reports and statements we receive regarding the fund are easy to understand and I consider them a bonus as well. The real importance, though, lies in their understanding of this region and being able to help us make grants that will have a lasting impact.”

The ShoreLine Group Fund focuses its grantmaking on supporting education and combatting food insecurity, two causes that Bob is very passionate about. Outside of his fund, Bob also serves as a member of the Community Foundation’s Board of Trustees, and, in 2024, he became chair of the organization’s Investment Advisory Group (IAG).

“If I had to describe it, my time as a Trustee of the Community Foundation and as Chair of IAG has been refreshing,” he said. “This is an incredibly involved and active board that looks at problems and helps to find creative solutions that are in the best interest of the organization, its fundholders, and above all, our community.” “The Community Foundation’s Board is truly an adjunct to the staff, and they work so collaboratively,” he continued. “It’s remarkable to see the camaraderie and sense of community that flows between the two. I like to say that the Community Foundation has forever changed me.”