Triangle Community Foundation is committed to ensuring that our region is home to thriving people and vibrant places. Through our Fund for the Triangle, we partner with generous donors and community investors to collectively provide funding and resources that support the most critical needs in the Triangle. This unrestricted Fund provides direct support to the Foundation’s impact areas (see below), ensuring that we are able to partner with strong nonprofits that are the footing of our community’s health. Because the Fund is permanent and community-based, beyond our Impact Areas, it also allows us the flexibility to be nimble so that we are able to respond quickly to pressing needs affecting our region. Most recently, the Fund allowed us to provide COVID-19 grants locally.
Learn more about our important 2023 fundraising goal in celebration of our 40th anniversary here!
Join us and be a catalyst for change!
What Does Fund for the Triangle Support?
Within our four impact areas that are supported by our Fund for the Triangle, we fill gaps, reduce inequities, and address the region’s most pressing challenges. Through annual grant programs and educational opportunities we are building a strong and innovative ecosystem of nonprofits that are creating lasting change in our region. Thanks to our donors, we've granted more than $4.5 million to organizations in these impact areas since 2013.
Frequently Asked Questions
How does Fund for the Triangle work?
The Fund was launched in 2013. Donors make unrestricted gifts into it, placing their trust in the Foundation’s expert staff and Board. The Foundation then makes grants across our impact areas in our four counties, developing partnerships with strong nonprofits doing critical work.
What does Fund for the Triangle support?
First and foremost, Fund for the Triangle supports the Foundation's research-based impact areas on an ongoing basis with grant programs completed each year, and we invite you to learn more about these grant programs and view stories from our nonprofit partners on our website. However, it is also set up to respond to immediate needs through specialized grant programs as they arise. For example, recently the Fund was able to quickly respond to needs during the COVID-19 pandemic, investing in five rapid response funds including support for local arts organizations, in several relief funds focused specifically on direct aid to local families who are not eligible for federal government programs, and through partnership with Triangle Capacity-Building Network, in stabilization funding to support organizations led by and supporting people of color.
More specifically, when and where will my unrestricted gift to Fund for the Triangle be used?
The benefit to making an unrestricted gift to the Fund is knowing that it will be utilized when and where it is needed most. This means that a gift made today may be used for a critical need in our community right now, or it may not be used until next year's impact area grant cycle. Our donors are placing their trust in our Board, staff, and volunteers to determine the very best use of these gifts, and we take this trust very seriously. A gift to the Fund is a true bond between the Foundation and the donor; our values align and we have a mutual agreement that your gift will have a significant impact on our community.
Can I make a donation or recommend a grant from a fund to a specific field-of-interest or county?
Yes. A donor can restrict their gift into Fund for the Triangle if they so choose, however it is our recommendation that donors make unrestricted gifts to allow the Foundation to be as nimble as needed and maximize impact.
How does the Foundation decide where the funding goes?
The Foundation uses advisory committees made up of members of our community, residents across our region that bring lived experience and diverse perspectives. Many, but not all, of our programs are application-based, and all funding decisions are approved by our Board of Directors.
How can I help?
There are three ways you can be a catalyst for change in our region by supporting the Fund for the Triangle.
- Make a one-time donation on our website
- Make a grant from an existing fund managed through the Donor Portal (existing fundholders only)
- Leave a transformational legacy gift that will have impact over generations