Holiday Hope and Inspiration During a Time of Crisis

Hope and inspiration can be hard to come by these days.
 
But our team found it throughout 2023 as we worked closely with partners who are building stronger communities in every corner of the U.S.
 
We’ve felt it in Hawaíi, where Hawaíi Community Foundation is helping those impacted by the deadly wildfires in Lahaina recover and rebuild.
 
We’ve felt it in New York, where The New York Community Trust is partnering with nonprofits to ensure that the city’s newest residents have the chance to build and sustain quality lives and can ensure that their rights are protected.
 
We’ve felt it in Georgia, where the Georgia Health Initiative is carrying forth the lessons learned through a pioneering program to improve rural health outcomes to create healthier families and communities.
 
We’ve felt it in Michigan, where the Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan is bringing together police, community groups, and neighbors to develop community policing programs that are making neighborhoods safer.
 
And we’ve certainly felt it through our work with Alabama’s Black Belt Community Foundation. The Black Belt is home to Selma, where Martin Luther King, Jr., walked across the Edmund Pettus Bridge to embark on the historic march to Montgomery — action which helped pave the way for the Voting Rights Act. 
 
Today, the community foundation is striving to write a new story about the Black Belt — one that shows the region’s incredible strength and resolve.
 
These are just some of the organizations that have invited us in and given us the opportunity to support their important work in 2023.
 
As we reflect on a challenging year and look ahead to a 2024 that will undoubtedly be marked by conflict, war, and division, we'd like to express our thanks to so many of you who are continuing to fight for a better world.
 
Your work inspires us and gives us hope.
 
We wish all of you a peaceful and joyous holiday season.

Peter, Scott, Mori, Lauren, Gerry, Nicki