It was born from a desire to make a difference. To unify resources for the benefit of the local African-American community. To create a legacy that would make our little part of the world better forever.

Today, the Initiative holds $2.4 million in assets and has returned more than $1 million to the community.

AACF Committee members (from left, back): Karen White, Vincent Henderson, Tina Patton, Seymour Barker, Roland Chamblee, Alfred Guillaume; (from left, front): Virginia Chism, Virginia Calvin, and Marion Fulce

In 1999, the African American Community Fund Initiative began.

About theAfrican American Community Fund Initiative The African American Community Fund Initiative (AACF) consists of more than 20 individual funds held within the Community Foundation of St. Joseph County. While all of these focus on issues of concern to the African-American community, they are unique funds with specific emphases. Donor-Advised Family Legacy Funds, for example, allow donors to stay involved in determining how dollars generated by their funds are spent. Scholarship Funds create opportunities for talented, deserving African-American students, often in honor of the memory of a loved one. Field of Interest Funds provide a way to focus investment on specific areas of interest within the African-American community.

Together, these funds make up the African American Community Fund Initiative, which holds more than $2.4 million devoted to issues of importance to local African Americans. These assets are invested permanently; the dollars they generate return to our community, improving the lives of local African Americans now and forever.

When we strengthen a part of the community,we strengthen the whole.

—Myrtle Wilson

Past AACF Committee Chair

The African American Community Fund Initiative:A Family of Funds

The African American Community Fund

The Charles Martin “Touch a Life” Scholarship Initiative

Donor-Advised Family Legacy Funds Hartie and Louise Blake Family Fund

Phillip and Rosamond Byrd Family Fund

Richmond and Virginia Calvin Family Fund

Rosalind Ellis/Carl Ellison Fund

Dr. Vincent and Angela Henderson Family Fund

Hollis E. and Lavera K. Hughes, Jr. Fund

Paul and Sharon McLeod Fund

Melvin Reed and Doris Bradley-Reed Family Fund

Arnold and Vivian Sallie Family Fund

Perry and Ida Reynolds Watson Fund

Karen and Derrick White Fund

Herbert L. and Myrtle C. Wilson Family Fund

Scholarship Funds Dr. Richmond E. Calvin Scholarship Fund

Virginia B. Calvin Scholarship Fund

South Bend Area Chapter of the Links Scholarship Fund

Anthony David Moore Memorial Scholarship Fund

NAACP South Bend Branch Scholarship Fund

NAACP KeyBank Scholarship Fund

India Claire Patton Scholarship Fund

Field of Interest Funds South Bend Area Chapter of the Links Fund

for African American Arts and Culture

How did you first get involved with the AACF?

VC: Well, back in 1999, Rose came to my office and presented the idea. She asked for our support as campaign co-chairs. And I said, We’ll do it. The Calvins will do it. We knew if you put away money, it would grow. And it would grow in a community.

So Cal and I made our list of a dozen or so families with comparable ideas, comparable sentiments. People we thought would see the big picture. We had those folks over for breakfast one morning, and after we’d eaten—we had a feast!—we took a seat in the family room and we started talking. Those Founding Families thought it was a great idea. And they said, Yes.

RC: They all said yes. And the more people bought in, the more we became inspired by those people.

What appealed to you about the idea?

RC: Ginnie and I grew up in communities in Louisiana where people had a lot of pride. They tried to take care of themselves, to grow money for their groups. For example, the black churches took pride in putting money away for burial insurance.

My great-grandmother used to put away a quarter a week so she’d have that burial paid for when she died. We saw the Fund as something similar: Community advancement. Pride. Self-sufficiency. Taking care of your own and helping yourself.

VC: My agenda was only one piece: The legacy. It’s our responsibility to leave this world a better place after we’ve gone than we found it. One way to improve it is to find ways to make systemic changes, the way we’ve been doing with the Fund—in small steps. You cannot measure the change in a community overnight, but the big thing is to change the attitude of people. If the attitude changes, the behavior will change.

What impact does the Fund make?

RC: As African Americans, we want to have a seat at the table on issues that concern us. And we don’t want to come to that table begging, with a hand out. Now, with the resources in this fund that we’ve all worked together to build, we have made ourselves a seat at the table. We have a voice.

VC: We want people to know: Nothing is impossible if you learn to work together as a group.

Drs. Richmond and Virginia CalvinAfrican American Fund Campaign Co-Chairs

Since its inception in 1999, the African American Community Fund has focused on four priorities: Education, the Arts, Leadership Development, and the Special Challenges Facing African-American Males. The generosity of 12 local families provided the seed capital that was generously matched by local institutions, Lilly Endowment Inc., and then hundreds of subsequent gifts, large and small. It has always been about more than money. It has been about providing constructive influence as well as financial support as our community undertook projects like the Civil Rights Heritage Center, effective strategies like the South Bend Group Violence Intervention, programs showcasing African-American artistic contributions, and proven educational initiatives to promote social, emotional, and academic success. It has been about ensuring we never forget the legacy of a hero like Charles Martin, Sr., who urged us to “touch a life every day.” Much work remains to be done, but the African American Community Fund serves as an enduring reason for hope.

PresidentCommunity Foundation of St. Joseph County

Since the African American Community Fund Initiative began in 1999, more than more than $1,000,000 has been returned to the community to enrich the lives of local African Americans.

The African American Community Fund Initiative:An Enduring Reason for Hope

An AACF meeting at the Community Foundation

ARC FundAnonymous (multiple gifts)

Beacon Health SystemBowsher-Booher Foundation

Lilly Endowment, Inc.Saint Joseph Regional Medical Center

University of Notre Dame

Laidig Scholarship FundDrs. Olufemi and Olubunmi Okanlami

Memorial Health FoundationNAACP-South Bend Branch

Teachers Credit UnionIda and Perry Watson / Lexus

Crowe HorwathCressy Foundation

William and Anna Jean CushwaPeggy and Joseph EdwardsFaegre Baker Daniels LLP

GE Foundation Bob and Pat Kill

Phil and Roz ByrdRosalind Ellis / Carl Ellison

Dr. Vincent and Angela HendersonHollis and Lavera Hughes Jr. B. Robert and Patricia Kill

Martin Luther King Jr. FoundationDr. Paul and Sharon McLeod

Richmond and Virginia Calvin Northern Indiana Public Service CompanySchurz Communications Foundation, Inc.

South Bend Area Links, Inc. South Bend Tribune

Gifts of $50,000 to $99,999

Gifts of $25,000 to $49,999

Gifts of $10,000 to $24,999

Constance Moore, in memory of Anthony David MooreMelvin and Doris Reed

Arnold and Vivian SallieShirley Steinmetz

Karen and Derrick WhiteHerbert and Myrtle Wilson

African American Community FundHonor Roll of Giving

Gifts of $100,000 and up

Gifts from $5,000 to $9,999

Seymour and Cheryl Barker Joseph and Carolyn BradleyDr. Roland and Donna Chamblee Ronald and Nancy Cohen Alfred and Melanie Guillaume and SonsDr. Thomas and Eileen HughesJewish Federation of St. Joseph Valley, Inc.KeyBank Foundation Lake City BankBarbara K. Warner

Gifts from $2,500 to $4,999

Kevin and Tonya BradfordLoretha BuchanonLynn and Myrtle ColemanNimbilasha CushingWillis and LeGay HolmesNancy and Gary IcklerRobert and Wilma JonesKarl and Margaret KingNancy and John KingGeorge and Jeanette McCulloughRose and Collin MeissnerRev. Michael and Tina PattonDavid and Laura Ray E. Jack and Mary ReedOtha and John ReeseBill and Maureen RobertsChuck and Denise RoemerDon and Therese RohanCleo WashingtonAdeline Wigfall-Jones

1st SourceAmerican Electric Power / Indiana Michigan PowerJose and Cheryl Alvarez Aaron and Janice AustinMeg Auth and Jerry ThomaBruce and Linda Bancroft Louise BlakeDavid, Jill, and Jessica BrenayLorraine and Todd BruceKathy and Anthony ByrdChurch of God in ChristRobert and Birdeen Coatie Gene and Margo DeMontKirby and Claudia Falkenberg Dwight and Marion FulceNorma Jean GanawayThe Gates FundJohnnye K. GibbsJeff GibneyDr. Oliver and Cheryl GilliamDr. Dale GraysonImogene and Edward Harris Glenda and Reynaldo Hernandez

James and Sharon HurtAlberta and George Husband Cassandra and Homer Jackson Jr.Edward M. Jordanich Jonathan and Edwina Kintner Drs. William and Julia KnightJim and Nancy KrzyzewskiLa Chayne De Voyaguers, Inc.Greta Roemer Lewis and Jay LewisBarbara C. LobdellWarren and Iris Outlaw Charlotte PfeiferDoris Prince Jacquelyn and Christopher RuckerJanet and Richard ScholtesWilliam and Susan ShieldsKathy and Leonard SmithSorelle Entre Nous Club Dean and Janet StryckerAlfonza WardWiley H. Wells Dr. James and Marjorie WilsonG. Toms and Marjorie Yarger

Gifts from $1,000 to $2,599

Gifts from $500–$999

Bethel Business Machines David and Ruth BlakeCarl and Susan BossungAllert and Tracy Brown-GortJohn Charles Bryant Tom and Pam BurishAl and Debra CarothersKaty and George Cressy Jr.Gary and Katy Downey Dr. Steve and Lisa GerberJerry and Dorene HammesRoy and Mary Jan HedmanEd and Anita HenryCurt and Laura Holaway Human Beginnings, Inc. Rebecca L. Johnson Jim and Melinda KeenanJoe and Maggie KernanLa Casa of Goshen, Inc. Daniel and Joan LawsonSteve and Peg Luecke Missionary Johnnie B. Love Memorial Scholarship Fund Drs. Bernard and Etta Nevel Pat and Jane PinnickBill and Mary Jane StanleyDr. Larry and Janet Thompson JoAnn and James Wittenbach

Gifts from $250–$499

Alford’s Mortuary, Inc.American National Trust & Investment Management Co.Steve and Louise AnellaForestine Blake Broadway Theatre LeagueDorita and David Buggs CBS Medical Van Service Citizens for Rafael Morton CommitteeCorey and Becky CressySteve and Jennifer DeaneJay EdwardsGeorge Efta and Carol MooneyBertha and Ed FitzpatrickEd and Cheryl Fleming James and Brenda Fleming Albert and Margaret Gutierrez Julie and Joe Harmon IIIDawn and Jerome JonesJulia and Edward J. JordanichLois MasonDr. Pedro and Lauri Miro Gladys MuhammadSarah Oldham Jennifer and Frank PerriBill and Alma PowellJill and Steven Ross Bettie and Huey Schoby Bonnie and Harry ShafferJay Michael SmithSouth Bend Heritage FoundationURS CorporationWilliam H. Voll

Gifts up to $249

100 Black Men of Greater South BendPamela J. AllenJames and Deborah Austin Jr.Vernell Ball-DanielElizabeth Rankin and Joseph BelangerLinda and Charles BlackBemis BlakeRobert BlakeSharon Macon Blake

Walter A. BlakeBernice Blake-FreemanDorine Blake-SmithValerie Larsen and Steven BokerMaxie and Ruth BoldenAnita F. BoordaThomas Brooks BrademasSammie and J. D. Bradford Jr.Tom and JoAnne BrodenMamiella Chavis Brown

Dr. Merribeth and Earl BruningMayor Pete Buttigieg / City of South BendBarbara J. Shields ByrumDr. Almira CannJeff CarterDavid and Evelyn ChellJohn ChildressVirginia ChismJohn and Patricia Clark

(continued)

Gifts up to $249 (continued)

Willa B. ConnersGenora CrozierDick and Chris CurreyMary K. DaviesRon and Betty DeWinterEdna DillardRuth DodgsonJulie A. DominiackJerry L. DonaldsonJohn and Beverly DonatiDoris A. DoyleJoe and Mattie DukeJoe and Joyce DunfeeElks Lodge No. 298Marcus EllisonThomas L. EmmonsCarl and Mary EvansCarol and Richard EvansRabbi Morley T. FeinsteinMarjorie F. FinkFlorie FischgrundBob and Loretta FrankFreeman Spicer CharitiesDr. Michael and Jody FreidJim and Karen FrickDr. Gary and Nana FrommCordell and Nancy FunkAndre and Andrea GammageMarcia GammageNorma GanawayGreg and Mary Beth GicziOra Mae GlispieSpencer and Lillie GradyPaula and Donald GrandisonYolande GraysonDianne E. GreavesBruce and Kathy GreenbergJanice HallLawrence and Betty HalliburtonWilliam HaltJuanita HamiltonRobert and Ann HarmanCedric HarrisCarol and Brian HedmanRichard R. HeismanMarcia Sheridan and Fred HerschedeMarian HodgesJan and Robert Hoenk, CLUHolland Insurance GroupLouetta and James HollisterJames and Beth HurstLeonard and Deana James

Sadie and Kay JenkinsMax JenaJohnnie R. JohnsonWertie JohnsonDan and Marcia JonesGeorge and Sharon JonesAndrea and Duke Jones IIIJoseph S. Fragomeni Inc. Barbara JosephJann JosephMarsha Brook and Fred KahnJames and Kathryn KaiserNancy S. KavadasJim and Sharon KapsaJosephine KingsberryEdward and Jo Ann KlodzinskiKurt KochRichard A. LamannaBeth and Lester LamonMary and Louis Lapierre IIILasalle Intermediate AcademyRichard and Debbie LiciniTom and Cathy LowerBrenda J. MacLeanAbraham and Sara MarcusDr. Jan Sanders McWilliams and Leo McWilliamsJoAnn R. MeehanAlice MillerKate and Dennis MillerAngela MitchellSpandward MitchemFelicia R. MoodiePauline J. MortonCrescent N. MuhammadCarmen and Louis NanniNancy A. NeherAngela NelsonBette and Patrick L. O’Malley Jr.David C. OlsonPat Bauer for RepresentativeJoseph and Vera PeeleKim PowersCarolyn J. PritchardKenyae ReeseRiver of Life Family ChurchLa Tanya RogersS & K LearningBrian Roscoe D.C. Pamela and David SchraderDr. Richard and Catherine SheehanKathleen W. Smith

Theresa Lazar SpringmannSt. Luke’s Memorial Church of God in ChristLinda K. SteinhofferSwanson Highland PTOJosephine Reed-Taylor and David TaylorMamie and Thomas TaylorRosalyn SummerlinW. Irene Summers-Temple and Michael TempleDr. Michael and Carole ThomasRaphael ThomasJames ThreattTrans Tech Electric, Inc.Rosalind D. TuckerUnited States Attorney, Northern District of INJoseph and Sally Van BokkelenRichard and Mary Van Es Jr.Gatha M. VaughnGwendolyn Mettetal and David A. VollrathAnna WardWilliam WeeksMaxine WessonJessie and John WhitakerCreasie Blake WhiteElonda R. Wilder-HamiltonBrenda WilliamsBonnie Lee WillisConsuela WilsonFrances J. WilsonGeorge and Colette WolfsonLester WolfsonGeorge and Chris WoolridgeWNIT-TV Channel 34 Marlene Wright

African-American males face special issues that are unique to their demographic. One of those is gun violence. Each year, somewhere in the range of eight to 16 people are shot dead in our community. Scores more are injured by gunfire, often permanently. Most of the victims and the perpetrators are young black men who are involved in groups or gangs.

The cost of this violence is too high: Lives are wasted, and all young black men are stigmatized because of the crimes of a few.

That’s why the African American Community Fund is supporting the South Bend Group Violence Intervention (SBGVI), a partnership among representatives

from the Mayor’s Anti-Violence Coalition, local law enforcement, government, education, health care, and social service agencies.

SBGVI relies on direct communication with the people who are most likely to shoot or get shot. This communication happens through a “call-in” of individuals on probation or parole where the partners deliver a clear message: The violence is hurting our community and has to stop.

Two years into SBGVI, we’re seeing significant reductions in group-related gun violence. Local law enforcement believes in its effectiveness: Recently, the SBPD formed a special unit to continue to implement this approach.

The South Bend Group Violence Intervention (SBGVI)

In partnership with local law enforcement, leaders in the African-American community, and social service agencies, we’re working to stop the violence and make our community safer.

Fund Focus: Special Issues Facing African-American Males

SBGVI partners

Of all the issues important to the future of the African-American community—and our community as a whole—education tops the list. Progress on poverty, social justice, wealth creation, and economic vitality depends on improving educational outcomes for children and youth. The African American Community Fund knows how much education matters. Helping young people pursue a college education is critical, and it’s equally important to ensure that high school students are prepared for college. That’s a process that begins at birth. AACF resources helped extend the Community Foundation’s Early Years Count Initiative beyond HeadStart and childcare centers

Giving Children and Youth a Fair Chance through Education

In Fall 2015 alone, more than 5,600 local children benefitted from Community Foundation early childhood education programs supported in part by the AACF—the majority of them in schools and preschools with high populations of students of color.

Teacher Andy Theus works with a student at Vision Day Care. Andy has been trained in the HighScope curriculum through an AACF-supported program.

to the African-American daycare ministries that begin the learning process for hundreds of local children each year. In addition to workshops, mentoring, and supplies, daycare ministry teachers were given access to intensive training in the evidence-based HighScope curriculum. AACF resources are also supporting the implementation of the AP-TIP IN program at Washington High School. This new program will work with Notre Dame’s Institute for Educational Initiatives, improving college readiness through increased access to AP classes and support for both AP teachers and students. And when those students are ready for college, there are multiple AACF scholarships ready to assist them.

The Charles Martin “Touch a Life” Scholarship

The Charles Martin “Touch a Life” Scholarship was established to create a meaningful and lasting tribute to a remarkable man who mentored hundreds of students throughout this community. This scholarship provides academically motivated African-American students with $5,000 tuition assistance plus an opportunity to give back to their community through a $2,500 paid summer internship with a local nonprofit—significant financial support and meaningful work experience.

For the 2015-16 school year, there are five Charles Martin scholars. These bright young women and men are pursing degrees in psychology, youth development, marketing, biology, and mechanical engineering at Bowling Green State, Indiana University Bloomington, Adrian College (MI), and the University of Notre Dame. The two Charles Martin alumnae—Indiana University Bloomington graduate Cheyenne Starner and University of Notre Dame graduate Bryanna Bocardo—are currently enrolled in post-graduate education in healthcare.

Fund Focus: Education and Scholarships

Charles Martin Scholar Cassia LeBron-Williams in her 2014 summer internship with the “Girls Club” at St. Margaret’s House

More Scholarships for Young African Americans

Additional scholarship funds within the African American Community Fund Initiative include the Dr. Richmond E. Calvin Scholarship, the Virginia B. Calvin Scholarship, the South Bend Area Chapter of the Links, Inc. Scholarship, the Anthony David Moore Memorial Scholarship, the NAACP South Bend Branch Scholarship, and the India Claire Patton Scholarship.

To date, the AACF scholarship funds have distributed more than $145,000 to talented young African-American students in our community, giving them the concrete, meaningful support they need to achieve their dreams.

Clockwise from top: Soloist Hanna White with the SB Symphony for the Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration Concert; a rehearsal of South Bend Civic’s Blue; the Lift Every Voice concert; IUSB’s Raisin in the Sun

Celebrating the Music, Theater, Dance, and Cultural Events of African Americans

The African American Community Fund supports and encourages music, theater, dance, and cultural activities that celebrate the African-American experience. Over the years, these have included the annual “Lift Every Voice: Celebrating the African-American Spirit” concert at IUSB, which showcases the talents of African-American dancers, vocalists, musicians, and composers; the South Bend Symphony’s annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration Concert, featuring the winner of the national Sphinx Competition; plays and musicals with South Bend Civic Theatre and IUSB’s Theatre Department that explore the African-American experience, and many other artistic and cultural events throughout the community.

Whether we are on the stage or in the audience, we cultivate joy and pride when we share our artistic talents with others. Everyone benefits when our community’s arts reflect the diversity and breadth of its members.

The final measure of the greatness of all peoples is the amount and standard of the literature and art they have produced.

—James Weldon Johnson

Fund Focus: African-American Arts and Culture

Since its inception, many donors have made gifts—large and small—to the main African American Community Fund. Each gift makes the AACF more powerful, because all gifts are pooled together and invested to generate earnings. You can make a gift by check, with stock, or by credit card online at www.cfsjc.org.

Like the more than 20 families and organizations that have set up separate funds within the African American Community Fund Initiative, you can create your own fund—a Donor-Advised Family Legacy Fund, a Scholarship Fund, or a Field of Interest Fund. To create a named endowment fund, you’ll need to make a minimum commitment of $10,000, paid in one sum or through regular contributions over a period of up to five years. Individually, each fund is a permanent legacy for the family who creates it. Taken collectively, these funds add up to significant, dedicated resources for the African- American community.

For more information about how you can help support the AACF, please contact Rose Meissner, President, Community Foundation of St. Joseph County, (574) 232-0041. You may also mail contributions to African American Community Fund, Community Foundation of St. Joseph County, P.O. Box 837, South Bend, IN 46624.

Since 1999, hundreds of people have come together to build a legacy that will benefit local African Americans forever. Will you join us?

Make a Gift to the African American Community Fund Initiative

Charles Martin “Touch a Life” Scholarship Committee members, 2013

To learn more about the African American Community Fund Initiative at the Community Foundation of St. Joseph County or to make a gift to support this important effort, visit www.cfsjc.org.

P.O. BOX 837SOUTH BEND, IN 46624

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