Dade Community Foundation gets $6 million gift and new name, vision

Nov. 12, 2010 - PRLog -- MIAMI, FL –  Dade Community Foundation received a $6 million gift this week during its announcement of a new vision and a new name: The Miami Foundation.

The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation announced the $6 million gift during the unveiling of The Miami Foundation name and vision at a reception for donors, foundation trustees and civic leaders, including Ruth Shack, president emeritus.

“The Miami brand is very powerful and well known. We want to capitalize on the name to achieve some very ambitious goals we’ve outlined for us and our community,” Javier Alberto Soto, president of The Miami Foundation, said Wednesday. “Thanks to everyone in this room we are built for greatness.”

He added that the foundation’s new website can be found at http://www.miamifoundation.org.

The name change reflects The Miami Foundation’s plan to invest in and “help grow a greater Miami,” one in which 50 percent of its residents moved in well after the county’s name was changed to include Miami. The Miami Foundation’s new logo symbolizes its commitment to leadership, community and philanthropy.

Knight Foundation President and CEO Alberto Ibargüen announced the $6 million gift as part of a significant commitment to The Miami Foundation and the Miami community.

Knight Foundation will invest the money in the endowed Knight Fund at the Miami Foundation over the next seven years. Grants made from the gains of this fund are intended to serve the Miami community indefinitely and help promote an informed and engaged Miami. The gift more than doubles Knight Foundation's past investments in the fund.

“The new brand is one step that supports our organization’s goal to leverage our leadership, relationships and the financial resources of our 400 fundholders with others who want to invest in innovative, sustainable programs in Miami-Dade County,” Nancy Jones, vice president for public affairs and communications, said.

The Miami Foundation provides civic leadership, bringing stakeholders together to tackle issues of concern in our community. Working together, the Foundation, its Fundholders and community partners leverage collective knowledge, creativity and resources for a greater impact than any one of them could make alone.

By connecting philanthropy with community needs and opportunities, the Foundation makes Miami a greater place to live, work and play.

Established in 1967, The Miami Foundation, formerly the Dade Community Foundation, has helped hundreds of people create personal, permanent and powerful legacies by establishing custom, charitable Funds. With the expertise of the Foundation, Fundholders have fostered the arts, awarded scholarships, championed diversity, taught kids to read, helped victims of domestic violence, provided food and shelter for the hungry and homeless, and more.

More than $133 million in grants and scholarships has been awarded in the rich 43-year history. Today, the Foundation carefully stewards close to $150 million in charitable assets. For more information visit http://www.miamifoundation.org.

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