Kalamazoo Community Foundation

KZCF is dedicated to our mission to create a thriving community where people, resources and expertise are mobilized to advance racial, social and economic justice in Kalamazoo County. **What is a community foundation?** It’s simply a type of charitable organization that pools donations from individuals, families and businesses to support charitable initiatives within a specific geographic area — ours has and always will be Kalamazoo County. **Get** We get funds from individual donors, corporations, and other foundations in the form of cash donations, bequests, or other types of assets. **Grow** We then grow these funds by strategically managing them to generate new income —self-sustaining and growing in perpetuity to support Kalamazoo County. **Give** Finally, to funnel this new income into the community, we give grants to nonprofits addressing the local needs and priorities of our residents. **Gather** Beyond grantmaking, KZCF plays a vital role in community development and leadership by working to gather groups of community members together to address systemic issues. **Support** To ensure that we can continue to operate at full capacity, we rely on critical support and collaboration within our internal teams, which allows us to provide necessary support to our developing donor base. [Meet the People of KZCF](https://kzcf.org/leadership-team/) **Centering Anti-racism** Our commitment to anti-racism drives us to analyze all aspects of our work, tackle root causes of disparities and implement interventions to combat racism. We welcome questions that challenge us to grow and hold ourselves accountable to better serve historically oppressed communities, resulting in a deeper respect for our shared humanity and equitable access to opportunities. **Cultivate Transformative Relationships** We actualize the transformative power of authentic relationships, which drive our work, influence people, shift institutions, advance movements and grow communities. Without them, we cannot thrive. Relationships keep us engaged, sustained and hopeful, propelling change forward. **Nurture Healing & Love** We understand that liberating our communities from oppression, particularly racism, requires both individual and systemic transformation rooted in healing and love. We see healing and love as essential for driving change, and we commit to learning from the past, building authentic relationships and engaging in both personal and collective healing. Our ultimate goal is a shared vision of liberation for all, fueled by the transformative power of love. **Serve the Greater Good** We uphold the greater good when making decisions centered on an abundant worldview, love and our shared humanity. We center those who have been historically oppressed in order to maximize the benefit for the collective. We advance decisions that are rooted in integrity, honesty and transparency. **Embrace Joy** We believe joy is a form of resistance, liberation and connecting to our wholeness amid the demands of transformational work. It is essential for sustainability, grounding, and purpose on our hardest days. Joy requires space and practice. Joy takes us beyond survival and is at the center of a re-imagined, prosperous, and loving community. **Learn & Grow** We thrive through continuous learning and evolution, embracing the imperfect and iterative nature of the process. We pledge to apply newfound knowledge in navigating the complex, uncomfortable and non-linear path toward racial, social and economic justice. Taking responsibility for our individual learning, we foster spaces for collective reflection and analysis. [Meet the People of KZCF](https://kzcf.org/leadership-team/) **Centering Anti-Racism** Centering anti-racism is the ongoing practice of using the power, influence and privilege that individuals or organizations hold to take actionable steps to undo behaviors, thoughts and actions that contribute to racial inequity and injustice. **Capacity Building** Organizational, institutional and human resource developments that increase an organization’s effectiveness or capabilities to survive, adapt and thrive. **Capital Campaigns** Fundraising strategies that are created to meet a specific financial goal within a time period. Objectives of capital campaigns often include construction projects, building improvements and equipment purchases. **Community Foundation** A type of charitable organization that pools donations from individuals, families and businesses to support charitable initiatives within a specific geographic area. **Community Impact Officer** KZCF staff assigned to support applicants before, during and after funding processes. **Economic Justice** Recognizing the direct link between financial health and quality of life and using this understanding to champion financial prosperity that liberates economically oppressed groups. **Equity** Acknowledging that many groups of people have not received equal access to upward mobility, prosperity and an improved quality of life due to long-standing racial, social and economic injustice. **Funded Partner** An agency that has been informed of an upcoming grant award or is currently funded. **General Operations Funds** Operational funding that covers our partners’ day-to-day and ongoing needs. Operational costs may include wages and overhead expenses as well as programs, materials and supplies that help the organization fulfill its core mission. **Impact Data** Information collected across a year of programming or service that, when summarized, shows the impact (change or benefit) an agency has had on its participant(s). **Inclusion** The degree to which organizations value the contributions of diverse individuals to foster more effective, responsive and sustainable approaches to social challenges. **Intersectionality** The complex and cumulative way in which the effects of multiple forms of discrimination (such as racism, sexism and classism) combine, overlap or intersect, especially in the experiences of Black, Indigenous and people of color from historically disadvantaged racial groups. Intersectional programs and policies are intentionally designed for people with multiple oppressed identities to adapt to better assist each community member, regardless of how their identities intersect. **Public Entity** An organization that is part of the government or a publicly funded system. These entities operate at various levels – such as local, state or federal – and are typically created to serve the public good. Examples of public entities include universities, public libraries, government agencies and law enforcement. **Racial Justice** Honoring the foundational and undeniable humanity of all people while securing access to equitable opportunities that liberate oppressed racial groups. **Social Justice** Understanding that at the heart of our society’s foundation is basic human interaction, and it is our responsibility to consistently design and redesign our institutions to reflect our all-encompassing respect for one another in every area of life.