Our Family of Fund Advisors
The Community Foundation partners with generous individuals, families, foundations, and corporations that share a commitment to strengthening our community through philanthropy.
Explore some of their stories here, or visit our blog for more stories of donor impact.
Building Community Impact for the Long Term: Darrin Jahnel’s Vision in Action
For Darrin Jahnel, success isn’t defined solely by business growth or entrepreneurial achievement, it’s measured by impact. The co-founder of the Jahnel Group, a Schenectady-based custom software firm that has ... Read more
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A Lifetime of Service to Her Community
Growing up in Wellsville, NY, A.C. was recruited as a volunteer at a very young age, tagging along beside her mother, often going door to door to gather support for ... Read more
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Neil Golub – Our Region’s Greatest Ally
Everyone needs a hero, and the Golubs have been ours. “Leading in their commitment to family, to company, and to community, the Golubs created wide and open spaces for others ... Read more
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A Champion for Our Community
After sharing nearly 30 years of his time, talent, and treasure with the Community Foundation, Chuck Liddle, longtime friend of the Foundation and champion for our community, passed away in ... Read more
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Arnold Cogswell Health Care Fund
When the Albany Hospital for Incurables closed its doors in the early 1990s, proceeds from the sale were earmarked for charity. Arnold Cogswell, a well-known community leader, had held leadership ... Read more
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John Faunce and Alicia Tracy Roach Fund
The John Faunce and Alicia Tracy Roach Fund, created with a gift from the estate of John and Alicia Roach, was the preface to a love story that will continue ... Read more
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Bender Scientific Fund
Advancing Educational Research and Discovery Bender Hygienic Laboratory, founded in 1895 in Albany, was the first not-for-profit public health, medical, educational and research laboratory in the nation. It was named ... Read more
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Building Connections to Make More Good Possible
Jeff Mirel came to the Capital Region to care for his grandfather, but it was the community that convinced Jeff and his wife Janel to set down roots and raise ... Read more
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A Journey from Grief to Empowerment
Melissa Daniels was a social worker— a woman of profound strength and optimism. Throughout her lifelong health challenges, she continued her education, eventually achieving her dreams to support and empower ... Read more
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Legacy Supports the Next Generation of Journalists
Kevin McGoldrick was never able to meet his grandfather Gene Robb, storied publisher of the Times Union and Knickerbocker News from 1953-1969. However, through his participation in the selection committee, ... Read more
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The Herbert K. and Isabel C. Liebich Endowed Fund
During their lifetimes, Herbert and Isabel Liebich generously supported our community through their donor advised fund at the Community Foundation and in scholarship awards for the families of their employees ... Read more
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The Perennial Wisdom of Judith Fetterley
A lifelong gardener, Judith Fetterley has always enjoyed watching things grow, carefully tending the soil and her plants. Her approach to gardening mirrors her approach to giving. “I always felt ... Read more
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Joan S. and Peter R. Weill Endowed Fund Distributes First Grants
In early 2022, the Community Foundation received a bequest that will forever impact our Region’s natural landscape and habitat. Nearly a decade before, Joan and Peter Weill included the Foundation ... Read more
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Scholar Exhibits at Smithsonian
The Carr Family Memorial Scholarships fund was established in early 2023 by Lisa and Alan Smith of Virginia. Lisa is a Capital Region native, growing up and graduating from Berlin ... Read more
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Investing in Her Community’s Future
Throughout her childhood, Judith (Judy) Stein’s mother instilled in her and her siblings the idea of fairness through the example she set for them every day. While they never went ... Read more
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Partners with a Passion for Their Community
Jim & Cheryl Gold Jim and Cheryl Gold met during their studies at the Cooperstown Graduate Program of the New York State Historical Association and State University College at Oneonta ... Read more
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Next Generation Entrepreneurs Work to Improve their Community
The Lundy Legacy Foundation Having grown up on multi-generational family farms in Upstate New York and New Jersey, Reid Lundy and Breanna Lundy, CFP, graduated from Cornell University with a ... Read more
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Dedicated to Equality
Sherry and Barry Gold never took for granted their good fortune. Childhood sweethearts, they shared a commitment to family and community, which was demonstrated in their work and in the ... Read more
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The Barnet Family’s Work Continues in Perpetuity
William Barnet II was an early investor and a founding member of the Community Foundation. As his family had done before him, Mr. Barnet served his community as a volunteer, ... Read more
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The Power of Endowment Supports the Day Ahead
Both veterans of World War II, Virginia and Harry Taylor shared a lifelong commitment to service. Virginia served with the US Naval Reserve, putting her nursing background to good use ... Read more
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Honoring a Legacy
Myra and Joseph Patanian Endowed Scholarship In 1994, the board of the Latham Chamber of Commerce (now Colonie Chamber) chose to honor the founder and local small business owner, Joseph ... Read more
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Building and Sustaining Our Future
Barbara Linell Glaser, Ed.D. Having grown up surrounded by the natural landscapes of Minnesota, Barbara Glaser holds a special place in her heart for the great outdoors. Barbara made her ... Read more
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Make Your Own Scholarship Celebrates 20 Years!
Phyllis (Philly) Dake believed in the power of higher education and making it accessible. It was through her personal generosity that she created the Make Your Own Scholarship program in ... Read more
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Honoring John Boyd’s Legacy
John Boyd was a student at Watervliet High School when he was offered a job with a weekly pay of $9 — it was during the Great Depression. Though he ... Read more
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Providing A Safe Place For Kids
Nearly 30 years ago, the Community Foundation worked with the Mechanicville Area Community Service Center in southern Saratoga County to establish the Foundation’s very first agency endowment fund. It was ... Read more
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An Advocate’s Legacy Continues to Fight for Justice
Community activist Vera “Mike” Michelson devoted her life to fighting for social justice and bridging racial and economic divides while putting her progressive political beliefs into practice with street-level pragmatism. ... Read more
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The Greatness of a Community
On a Monday morning in July, I sat down with five Community Foundation supporters at the Rensselaer County Historical Society for a conversation about their commitment to philanthropy at the ... Read more
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Spreading Sunshine
Dennis and Lynne Crimi established the Jennifer Crimi Sunshine Fund as a way to continue to share the light their daughter brought to each of them and to her global community. The ... Read more
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