News
July 1st, 2026
Community Foundation Announces Fundraising Initiative to Raise $4 Million for Endowment
The Community Foundation of Tompkins County has publicly announced their Tompkins Today and Tomorrow Initiative, a fundraising campaign to raise $4 million dollars for their Tompkins Today & Tomorrow (TTT) Endowment.
At their annual celebration on June 30th, Community Foundation staff, Board and volunteers shared their efforts to increase their flexible grantmaking endowment, called Tompkins Today & Tomorrow Endowment, with the release of a video highlighting involved grantees, donors, and board members. Unlike the vast majority of community foundations in the United States, which were launched with significant endowments from their very beginning, Community Foundation of Tompkins County was established without significant endowment gifts for either grantmaking or operations, a key reason current leaders have identified support for the TTT Endowment as a top priority.
Increasing the size of the TTT Endowment, established in 2017, will provide a source of stable, permanent funding that can be flexible and responsive to the needs of Tompkins County. In an ever-changing political landscape, the grants from the TTT Endowment are awarded where they are needed most, as determined by community members’ assessments of applications from nonprofits. Community Foundation of Tompkins County has raised $2.9 million to date toward the $4 million dollar goal.
“It’s important that we, as local residents, keep an eye on our local community to keep it as healthy as we can,” says Susan Murphy, one of the leaders of the endowment initiative and a former board chair. “The Community Foundation serves as both a hub and catalyst for the community. It convenes conversations, identifies needs and opportunities, and offers support.”
The Community Foundation has a donor match challenge running now until the end of the year to reach 250 donors to the initiative. Already, more than 180 community members have stepped forward towards that goal, and your support can help unlock $25,000 by making a gift today.
You can make a donation to the Tompkins Today & Tomorrow Endowment Fund here.