News & Event
Greater Cincinnati Foundation (GCF) is pleased to announce the hiring of Rickell Howard Smith, J.D., as Director of Community Strategies. Working closely with Harold Brown, GCF’s Vice President of Community Strategies, she will be responsible for developing and implementing strategies for inclusive and active community engagement, serving as a knowledge resource both internally and in the community, and overseeing alignment of GCF’s community strategies staff structure to best implement its strategic grantmaking framework.
CINCINNATI (February 26, 2018) —The Greater Cincinnati Foundation (GCF) is pleased to announce Christopher Fister, partner at Castellini Management Company, has been elected as the new chair of its governing board, and Steve Jemison and Sallie Westheimer have joined the governing board.
“Chris will be an excellent chair for us,” said Ellen M. Katz, president/CEO. “Given his previous experience on the board of GCF and tenure on numerous boards throughout the Cincinnati area, he brings strong leadership and a deep understanding of what it takes to drive this foundation forward in serving our community.”
As a partner at Castellini Management Company, Fister is active in the management of a diverse group of operating companies including perishable distribution, trucking, luxury hospitality, and professional sports. He is a certified public accountant, holding an master’s in taxation from the University of Cincinnati and a bachelor’s from the University of Kentucky.
Fister’s board service includes serving on the board and the Executive Committee of Fifth Third Bank Cincinnati and St. Elizabeth Hospital. His past board service includes the Cincinnati USA Chamber Partnership and CincyTech. Past services to the community also include serving with Cincinnati Art Museum, Saint Xavier High School, Xavier University, Northern Kentucky University, Cincinnati Equity Fund, Cincinnati Zoo, and numerous others. He is an advisor to venture capital and is a member of the Advisory Board of CID Equity Partners, HillStreet Funds, Spire Capital, Blue Chip Capital Funds, and Allos Capital.
“I am very excited to have Sallie and Steve join our board,” Katz said. “They bring a vast wealth of experience in philanthropy and the community that will be valuable to our community foundation.”
Jemison is the former chief legal officer for Procter and Gamble. He serves as the Ohio State University Moritz College of Law national council chair, board chair of the Law and Leadership Institute, and as philanthropy committee chair for the Cincinnati Parks Foundation Board.
Westheimer is the retired president/CEO of 4C for Children, an organization she helped to found in 1972. She serves on the board of the Cincinnati Preschool Promise, Greenlight Fund Cincinnati, Leadership Cincinnati Alumni Association and The American Jewish Committee.
One of the nation’s leading community foundations, The Greater Cincinnati Foundation helps people make the most of their giving to build a better community. We believe in the power of philanthropy to change the lives of people and communities. As a community foundation, GCF creates a prosperous Greater Cincinnati by investing in thriving people and vibrant places. An effective steward of the community’s charitable resources since 1963, the Foundation inspires philanthropy in eight counties in Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana. At the end of 2017, GCF had net assets of $636 million.
CINCINNATI (August, 11, 2016) —A new PULSE study commissioned by The Women's Fund of The Greater Cincinnati Foundation illuminates how policies keep working families in a cycle of instability and dependence, even as they try to achieve self-sufficiency.
Many thanks to our Season Sponsor:
CINCINNATI (August 26, 2016) — The Women's Fund of The Greater Cincinnati Foundation invites you to join us for a poverty simulation, which challenges participants to walk in the shoes of our neighbors in need for an hour – to explore poverty experimentally. Our objective is to help people in our community better understand the realities of living in poverty and to take action on behalf of our neighbors in need.
Participants take on an identity – a unique persona – developed by the Ozanam Center for Service Learning, based on the lived experience of neighbors who have entrusted staff and volunteers with their stories.
Over the course of 60 minutes, participants take on the identity of a neighbor struggling to fulfill a month’s worth of basic needs like food, shelter, utilities, medication, employment, education and childcare - making use of resources available to people living in Cincinnati.
This is a simulation, not a game, as is based on real life experiences. During the simulation, participants are treated in a way that reflects the everyday interactions with agencies and individuals throughout the city. Immediately following the poverty simulation, an Ozanam Center staff member facilitates an interactive discussion where participants can share their experiences, new insights, questions and real world applications.
Reflection following the poverty simulation is an essential component of the experience.
To register for the event, please click on the date below. We have two dates and times available for your convenience. Both events will happen at Ozanam Center for Service Learning.
Thank you to our friends at St. Vincent de Paul and the Ozanam Center for Service Learning for collaborating with us to make this event possible. The Ozanam Center offers immersion experiences that connect people from diverse backgrounds, engage participants in poverty and justice issues in Cincinnati, and grow a commitment to long-term service and community engagement.
The Women's Fund of The Greater Cincinnati Foundation leads our community in ensuring the economic self-sufficiency of women in our region. Through leadership, research, and grantmaking, The Women’s Fund works to identify and address the barriers affecting working women and their families. Learn more and get involved at www.cincinnatiwomensfund.org.
One of the nation’s leading community foundations, The Greater Cincinnati Foundation helps people make the most of their giving to build a better community. We believe in the power of philanthropy to change the lives of people and communities. As a community foundation, GCF creates a prosperous Greater Cincinnati by investing in thriving people and vibrant places. An effective steward of the community’s charitable resources since 1963, the Foundation inspires philanthropy in eight counties in Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana. At the end of 2015, GCF had net assets of $533 million.
August 2019
Nearly 40 GCF donors and community partners joined us for a recent walking tour through Over-the-Rhine devoted to showcasing affordable housing strategies in action. The tour was conducted by Over-the-Rhine Community Housing (OTRCH), which has been driving empowerment for OTR residents through affordable housing for four decades, in part through support by Greater Cincinnati Foundation (GCF) grants. In 2018, OTRCH provided affordable housing for 850 residents — 36 percent of which are children — in more than 410 OTR apartments.
GCF’s work with affordable housing initiatives isn’t new, but this year we are intensifying our focus on this critical component of economic stability. Throughout our region there is a critical need — particularly for those earning $15,000 or less a year — of 40,000 additional affordable housing units (with “affordable” defined as costing no more than 30 percent of income). Adding to the challenge: low-income wages have not kept up with housing cost increases.
GCF is determined to open more doors to such units through our Affordable Housing Impact Investment Pool (AHIIP), details of which will be announced in September.
Greater Cincinnati Foundation (GCF) is proud to honor David Singleton at this year’s Men of Honor. This event salutes African American men who provide unique opportunities for the community and celebrates the accomplishments of extraordinary African American men who have succeeded against all odds and achieved special greatness. Don’t miss your chance to join us on Saturday, Nov. 16, and reserve your ticket today.
Learn more and register today.