Dear Friends,
Hundreds of thousands of people from different economic, ethnic, and racial backgrounds make up our Catholic community. For all our individual differences, we so beautifully compose a single body: the Church. In unity with the faithful who have already passed, we form the communion of saints —a communion that joins us to Christ.
As I reflect on fiscal year 2022 at the Catholic Community Foundation of Minnesota (CCF), I see our philanthropic community, a communion of saints itself, proving through its actions that so much more can be accomplished as one united body.
Over the past year, despite continuing economic uncertainty, CCF’s philanthropic community carried on without wavering in passing on blessings received. Our donors and partners opened a record 88 new funds and gifted more than $77 million. More importantly, cumulative grants from CCF funds totaled $18.6 million in community and ministry impact.
One-third of the grants facilitated by CCF were from perpetual endowments. These funds, which will yield grants forever, connect us with those who have come before us. In this report, you’ll meet a daughter who must carefully consider her parents’ wishes and values as she now oversees their endowment fund.
Endowment funds also give us the chance to establish relationships with generations yet to come. We share the stories of two archdiocesan priests and the steps they took during their lives to ensure their ministries would carry on after their passing. We also share the story of a parish whose members have planned for endowment distributions to help build a more hopeful future for its neighborhood.
Through philanthropy, we can recognize and empower the members of our community who are often forgotten or purposely ignored. The final story in this annual report provides a glimpse at three grants CCF made last year to support our brothers and sisters on the margins. It is my great honor to witness this communion of saints working to build God’s kingdom on Earth. Thank you for the role you play in this work and for your support of CCF’s mission through your engagement.
With gratitude,
Anne Cullen Miller, MBA
President