Founded in 1991, Arlington Community Foundation equips individuals, families and businesses with the charitable giving tools to support whatever immediate or long-term community needs are most important to them. “Arlingtonians have a history of acting boldly when there is potential to build a more equitable, sustainable and vibrant Arlington,” says Jennifer Owens, president and CEO. Through this boldness and hundreds of component funds, the Arlington Community Foundation has awarded more than $45 million in nonprofit grants and student scholarships since its inception. 

“At its core, the role of a community foundation is to create pathways that connect our community and its many different individuals, groups and organizations to the resources needed to flourish,” says Owens. “When you know where you can bring your particular talents and resources to bear, we want to hear about it and we want to support it whenever we can. It’s what we’re here for.”

In that same spirit of boldness and equity, the Community Foundation currently drives initiatives and pilots that tackle the displacement of Arlington’s lowest income community members, an accelerating trend.

“We can’t be the Arlington we want to be without addressing the well-being of our lowest income residents and making sure they can continue to be a part of Arlington’s community fabric,” Owens says. “That said, we are always scanning to identify and move resources toward the issues of the day. Today it might be affordable housing, recently it was pandemic response, and tomorrow, only time will tell.”

We can’t be the Arlington we want to be without addressing the well-being of our lowest income residents and making sure they can continue to be a part of Arlington’s community fabric.