There are foundations out there making a difference and here we will take a look at some of the most important ones working in the Chicago area today.

1. 4 Chicago Foundations And The
Amazing Work They Do
By Yosef Meystel
Image courtesy of Susan G.
Komen® at Flickr.com

2. Philanthropy, the love of humanity, sense of caring,
nourishing, developing, and enhancing what it means to be
human. These words may be beautiful sounding, but they
don’t simply stop there as they carry with them a real sense of
hope and caring. Philanthropy differs from charity in the sense
that it seeks to address the roots of social problems instead of
treating its symptoms. There are foundations out there
making a difference and here we will take a look at some of
the most important ones working in the Chicago area today.

3. The Robert R. McCormick Foundation.
http://www.mccormickfoundation.org/
The Robert R. McCormick Foundation was established in 1955 under The
Last Will and Testament of Col. Robert R. McCormick, long time publisher
and editor of the Chicago Tribune. Across all of their program areas, the
foundation describes a unified mission: “The McCormick Foundation is
committed to fostering communities of educated, informed and engaged
citizens.” The foundation’s can be summed up in the following programs:
Education: With strategies focused on targeting public policy in order to
improve quality early education for children, enhancing public awareness
about education opportunities and benefits, and building a strong
infrastructure to improve the quality of programs and professionals.
Journalism: Focusing on the education of audiences to appreciate the
value of news and the preservation of the freedom of press and access to
public information.

4. Civics: Promoting civic knowledge and habits amongst young people and
strengthen the civic education system by empowering teachers.
Communities: Directing services to programs that support public
education and health, raising funds to improve communities and
developing learning communities of funders, service providers and
researchers.
Veterans: Providing veterans access to comprehensive services, education,
healthcare and community engagement.
Cantigny Park: Providing exceptional and sustainable opportunities for the
recreation, instruction and welfare of the people of Illinois.
Since its inception, the Foundation has given more than $600 million in its
home city of Chicago and state of Illinois and an additional $570 million in
communities across the country.

5. The Reva and David Logan Foundation.
http://www.loganfdn.org/
Supporting local, national and international causes for social justice,
scholarship, arts and investigative journalism. One of the most notable
things about this foundation is the wide spectrum of grants they offer
and their deep commitment to the Chicago community.
The arts in culture are of big importance to the Logan Foundation. This is
evident by their constant support of musical and artistic endeavors like
3Arts, Arts Alliance Illinois, the Chicago Jazz Philharmonic and more
recently Hip Hop artist Sicangu Lakota and producer and performer Frank
Waln.
Social justice and community programs are something else they support,
with grants and outreach for programs like the Chicago Women in
Philanthropy’s leadership and mentoring program, the Chicago
Foundation for Women’s 100% Project, and the Chicago Alliance to End
Homelessness.

6. Even though many of their investigative grants are given to groups
in D.C. and California, a recent three-year grant of $500,000 given
to the Experimental Station-Invisible Institute, shows their
continuous commitment to Chicago Writers. Some other grants for
2016 include:
$27,000 for college scholarships for three recent female graduates
from Kelly High School.
http://www.bpncchicago.org
$100,000 to support the Altgeld-Riverdale Early Learning Initiative.
http://www.bpichicago.org
$80,000 to support the launch of their volunteer program (Arts)
http://chicagoliteracyalliance.org

7. Lloyd A. Fry Foundation
http://www.fryfoundation.org/
The Lloyd A. Fry Foundation supports organizations to address
persistent problems of urban Chicago resulting from poverty,
violence, ignorance, and despair.
The second quarter of 2015 The Lloyd A. Fry Foundation
announced grants totaling $1,075,000 in support of Arts Learning,
Employment, and Health programs in the City of Chicago. Some of
the recipients were: Muntu Dance Theatre of Chicago for multi-
disciplinary African and African-American arts residency programs
for youth, the Chicago Lighthouse for People who are Blind or
Visually Impaired, which received $30,000 for their job training
program and the Primo Center for Women and Children, a social
service agency located in Austin, serving homeless women and
children. The Foundation has awarded more than $186 million in
grants since 1983.

8. The Paul M. Angell Family Foundation.
http://pmangellfamfound.org/
The Paul M. Angell Family Foundation awards grants in three priority
areas: Conservation, Performing Arts and Social Causes.
Conservation: The main focus of the foundation’s grant is safeguarding
the world’s oceans and its species. The Foundation supports efforts to
fund species protection, particularly regarding the seas’ apex predators.
Performing arts: Classical music and theater are the main areas from
which most grantees come from in this type of grants.
Social causes: Addressing the roots of poverty and inequality in urban
areas mainly. Programs that make emphasis in early intervention and
prevention. Finding ways to adjust life trajectories of socioeconomically
disadvantaged individuals and families in order to make the most out of
opportunities and projected social programs.