The Greater Kansas City Community Foundation is one of the most well-respected, knowledgeable leaders on charitable giving in the nation. They aim to make giving convenient and efficient for donors through donor-advised funds: charitable giving accounts that maximize and organize giving.

Mission:

The mission of the Greater Kansas City Community Foundation is to improve the quality of life in Greater Kansas City by increasing charitable giving, educating and connecting donors to community needs they care about, and leading on critical community issues.

History and Today:

The founders of the Greater Kansas City Community Foundation passed a hat in 1978, collecting $200 and some change. The Community Foundation was thus begun with an extraordinary idea: Charitable giving should be the responsibility of many, not just a select few. Driven to improve the metropolitan area, the Community Foundation has grown to become one of the largest and most entrepreneurial public charities of its kind.

Today the Community Foundation

• -Manages more than $2 billion in assets.
• -Houses more than 3,800 charitable funds established by individuals, families and businesses to support the charitable causes that are important to them.
• -Has provided more than $3 billion in grants since its inception.
• -Ranks in the top one percent of more than 700 community foundations in the country in terms of total assets, gifts and grants.

By partnering with the Community Foundation, donors receive the simplicity and tax advantages of a public charity combined with the personal recognition, involvement and flexibility of a private foundation. Donors also gain access to the highest level of strategic thinking on ways to meet community challenges.

Values:

• -Integrity. They conduct their work in an honest and transparent manner, holding themsselves accountable to their commitments and for their words and actions.
• -Respect. They value each person as an individual, embracing diversity and promoting equity and inclusion throughout their organization and region.
• -Passion. They are passionate about making donors' dreams come true through the power of philanthropy.
• -Innovation. They seek new ideas and approach their work with flexibility, urgency, enthusiasm and an entrepreneurial spirit.

Commitment to Diversity:

As the community's foundation, they are committed to promoting equity and inclusion throughout the region they serve, and it is their obligation to model diversity and focus the community conversation on racial equity.