Incoming chair and local attorney Michael A. Sweeney one of seven officers appointed
Nearly 200 people gathered at the Hilton Akron/Fairlawn for Akron Community Foundation’s 56th annual meeting, which featured stories of growth, grants and personal philanthropy.
Outgoing Treasurer Mark Allio announced that as of March 31, the community foundation held more than $135 million in philanthropic capital, a 7.45 percent growth over the previous year. The foundation’s investment returns of more than 12 percent continued to outperform the market average, he said.
Allio thanked donors for their fiscal-year contributions of more than $2.6 million, which helped award 900 grants and distributions totaling $6.23 million during the period of April 1, 2010, to March 31, 2011. He also congratulated the foundation’s donor advisors and designated fund representatives for increasing their grant-making by 13 percent during a financially difficult time for many local nonprofits. “You stepped up when the community needed you most,” he said, adding that their philanthropy helped set Akron Community Foundation apart from other grant-makers, 50 percent of which either decreased or saw no increase in their grants last year.
Incoming board Chair Michael A. Sweeney, partner at Brouse McDowell, introduced the 2011-12 officers: fellow Bath resident and MSA Associates CEO Mark Allio, vice chair; West Akron resident Dale Koblenzer, first vice president at Merrill Lynch, treasurer; Steve Strayer, Bath resident and senior vice president at PNC Institutional Investments, secretary and community relations chair; Ninth District Court of Appeals Judge Carla Moore, also of Bath, member at large; Bath resident Patricia Pacenta, partner at Buckingham, Doolittle & Burroughs, immediate past chair and member at large; and West Akron resident Rev. Sandy Selby, associate pastor at Furnace Street Mission, distribution chair.
The evening also included videos of charitable residents who are using their Akron Community Foundation funds to give back to the community. One video featured Bath residents Rennick and Dee Andreoli, whose “Hilton for Kids” initiative is rebuilding cabins for children with disabilities at Akron Rotary Camp. (Click here for the Andreoli video.) Another featured Fairlawn resident Elizabeth Brainard Sandwick, whose fund honors her late husband, former International Silver Company executive William C. Sandwick, while providing a permanent source of support for the Akron Art Museum.
The final video featured Bath resident Katie Farrell, a 16-year-old girl with autism. Her aunt, fellow Bath resident and local realtor Barb Hudak, started the Hudak Family Fund to provide resources to local families struggling with the autism spectrum disorder. (View all three videos here.)
After the video ended, Katie addressed the crowd, saying she hopes the fund will help other children with autism get the same kind of encouragement and support her family gave her. (Watch Farrell address meeting attendees in the video below.)
“The people in my life helped me become the person I am today … someone I can be proud of,” she said. “Everyone is special and beautiful in their own way.”
Finally, the foundation recognized Bill Considine, who will receive the 2011 Bert A. Polsky Humanitarian Award at a dinner on Oct. 18 at the Hilton Akron/Fairlawn. Tickets for the event are still available by calling (330) 376-8522.
Celebrating 56 years of building community philanthropy, Akron Community Foundation is a $135 million philanthropic endowment with a growing family of more than 360 funds, including the Community Fund, which meets the community’s changing needs in health, human services, education, civic affairs and the arts.
To learn more, contact (330) 376-8522, or, to make a gift, visit www.akroncommunityfdn.org/contribute.
