April 22, 2008

Media Release for the Community Foundation for the Twin Tiers
Contact: Marilyn Bok, Board Chair, 570-888-4759
For Immediate Release

Community Foundation for the Twin Tiers to Hold 5th Annual Meeting

The Board of Directors of the Community Foundation for the Twin Tiers has set a date for its fifth annual meeting. It will be held on Thursday, May 29, 2008 beginning at 5:00 pm at the Towanda Country Club on Route 6 East of Towanda.

As a way of celebrating its 5th anniversary the program will feature Bill Somerville, a nationally recognized expert on creative grantmaking. He has consulted at over 325 community foundations in the United States., Canade and the U.K. on effective operations and grantmaking. Bill publishes two periodicals: Building Community Foundations, distributed to all community foundations worldwide, and Dialogue, to non-profit organizations on fund development. He has taught courses on philanthropy at both Stanford University and a local community college.

Bill is a recipient of the 2004 Gerbode Fellowship Award in recognition of outstanding achievement as a non-profit executive. He is a founding member of the National Advisory Board, Haas center for Public Service, Stanford University, and a member of the University of California, Berkeley School of Social Welfare Advisory Board. He is president and founder of Philanthropic Ve0ntures Foundation and has 47 years of experience in non-profit work.

In addition, the meeting will feature the work of recent grantees and give recognition to new funds, donors and the work of the County Advisory Boards. The anniversary edition of the CFTT’s fifth annual report to the Community, “Looking Forward, Giving Back” will be presented to the community for the first time.

The Community Foundation for the Twin Tiers (CFTT) is a non-profit public foundation established in 2002 by a diverse group of local leaders and residents. The Foundation encourages community philanthropy to enhance the quality of life for those who reside in Bradford, Sullivan and Tioga Counties in Pennsylvania and Tioga County in New York State.

The CFTT was the fastest growing Community Foundation in Pennsylvania in 2006. The Board of Directors of CFTT is eager to report on the progress made by the Foundation in building its endowment funds and awarding funds to the community. The CFTT is dedicated to making a difference locally “for good – for ever?” It was recently given national accreditation by the Council on Foundations.

Marilyn Bok, Board Chair, stated: “Our fifth anniversary is a milestone for the CFTT and this annual meeting is a great opportunity for the Board to report to the public on its progress over the last five years. It will also be a time for the community to hear from a grant recipient on how they used the grant they were awarded by the Foundation. It is a very exciting time for us.”

The mission of the CFTT is to continuously improve the present and future quality of life in the counties served by the Foundation. It establishes endowment funds from contributions of many individual citizens, corporations, other foundations, other charitable organizations and government agencies for charitable purposes. As the endowment funds grow, it uses the interest earned on these funds to make grants consistent with the goals and interest of the donor and, in the case of undesignated funds, to organizations or projects that serve identified community needs.

To learn more about the CFTT or in establishing a fund, you can contact the organization by any of these methods: telephone - 570-888-4759; fax - 570-888-2179; email - cftt@stny.rr.com.

CFTT is dedicated to making a difference locally "for good - for ever^TM"