While some believed it was the end of one millennium and others believed it was the beginning of the next, the year 2000 was assuredly a wonderful year for The Rhode Island Foundation.

Yes, we probably say that every year, but with good reason. We discipline ourselves to pause regularly to reflect on what worked and what did not as we budget our time and resources for the coming year. Every year that we have worked together, the Foundation has been able to record measurable degrees of progress, and we feel this year is no exception.

What is progress for the strange beast that is a community foundation? Too often the measurements in our profession are quantitative and narrow: What was the growth in the endowment? How many grant dollars were distributed?

We can report positively on both those figures. Yet community foundations – including this one – truly have only one significant measurement: Will Rhode Island be better because of our work in the past year?

We are confident the answer is ‘yes’, and never more so than considering 2000, our first full year in One Union Station. We tried to balance new initiatives with scrupulous analyses of far more grant requests from traditional sources than we were able to accommodate.

We stabilized the state’s primary insurer of low- and middle-income families by engaging in our first “program-related investment”. We encouraged the revival of Providence’s historic Downcity by allocating a $9 million revolving loan fund. We welcomed four dozen generous individuals, families and organizations who chose to establish permanent funds at the Foundation. We attracted the attention — and resources — of national grantmakers like the Bill & Melinda Gates and Robert Wood Johnson foundations to apply to initiatives in education, health care, and conservation.

A key factor in our progress last year was inviting people to use One Union Station for their deliberations. On more than 200 occasions, nonprofit groups met within our four walls to grapple with such issues as hunger, the arts, health care, and immigration. Many of the gatherings were convened by us; others just utilized the neutral but comfortable venue we provide to discuss the matters at hand. Rhode Islanders also came to engage the art in our new public gallery; others attended public forums co-hosted by Rhode Island KIDS COUNT or WRNI, our tenants and colleagues.

The issues that arise within a community do not necessarily follow an orderly sequence. The Rhode Island Foundation tries to be constantly alert
in identifying or creating these opportunities.

We think this annual report of the Foundation’s activities in 2000 represents a wonderful opportunity for you to share and explore the efforts of your community foundation in 2000 and to continue to be a part of them in 2001 and beyond.

- Norman M. “Sandy” McCulloch, Chairman, Board of Directors
- Ronald V. Gallo, Ed.D., President & CEO