The Community Foundation expanded its team in recent years to include expert program officers who manage grantmaking in each of our community initiatives. Cindy Milian is the Health and Human Services Program Officer. Cindy oversees grants for individuals, public health initiatives, and human services initiatives. Cindy has a Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology and over 25 years of experience in roles related to family support and intervention. Before joining the Community Foundation, she worked at Berks County Children and Youth Services for two decades. As a first-generation American-born Latina with a diverse life experience and a strong background in community involvement, Cindy is well-equipped for her work in health and human services.
Some of Cindy’s initiative work includes support for rural communities in Berks County. The United Way’s ALICE Report (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed) shows that 41% of Berks County households are one paycheck away from a financial crisis. In analyzing the data further, Cindy found that 49% of households in the Hamburg Area School District met the ALICE report’s criteria for living in poverty. This information led her to reach out to community leaders in the Hamburg School District Area to discuss the needs in the community. Many leaders noted the lack of social services in rural communities like Hamburg. These conversations, along with supporting data from the United Way’s ALICE Report, led to Cindy’s new initiative work. This work will focus on helping community leaders work together to develop a strategic plan with action steps to meet the community’s needs.
To help us build a collective strategy of and by the community, the Foundation will work with Dianne Russell from the Institute for Conservation Leadership (ICL). During ICL’s 30-year history, they have assisted organizations with community building and community engagement, specializing in building coalitions, alliances, partnerships, and strengthening communities. Community leaders who would like to participate but have not yet connected with Cindy are encouraged to contact her.
To learn more about Cindy, view the video below.
For more information about Cindy’s grantmaking and initiative work, please reach out to her directly: cindym@bccf.org.
Who is Berks County Community Foundation?
Berks County Community Foundation was founded in 1994 to help individuals, families, organizations, and businesses achieve their charitable objectives. Our mission is to promote philanthropy and improve the quality of life for the residents of Berks County. The Community Foundation is a nonprofit corporation that serves as a civic leader for our region by developing, managing, and distributing funds to meet existing and emerging community needs. The foundation is governed by a volunteer board of directors and is run by professional staff with expertise in identifying the community’s needs. Today, more than 900 community foundations serve towns, cities, and geographic regions across the United States.
Berks County Community Foundation currently manages nearly $142 million in charitable assets, which provided more than $6 million in grants and scholarships in our last fiscal year ending June 30, 2024. Our program officers specialize in their areas of focus and oversee our grantmaking, ensuring that the grants we award meet the needs of the community while honoring the intentions of the donors who established funds with the Community Foundation.
What do we do?
We help Berks Countians structure their charitable giving. The Community Foundation helps individuals, families, and their professional advisors determine the best way to meet their charitable goals. This often includes honoring the memory of a loved one or supporting a cause about which the individual or family cares deeply. In either case, a member of the Community Foundation’s staff works with the people involved to determine the best way to meet their charitable objectives.
We professionally manage charitable dollars.
The Community Foundation manages the money in the charitable funds. Funds are created after a simple fund agreement is completed and an initial donation is received. The money is then pooled with the foundation’s other funds and professionally invested to ensure grants or scholarships – and the individual’s or family’s legacy – continue in perpetuity.
We distribute grants and scholarships and measure their results.
Our program officers are experts in their fields. The program team conducts site visits and researches pressing issues not only at the county level, but also regionally, nationally, and internationally to ensure grants and scholarships are improving the quality of life in Berks County.
Though donor-driven, much of our grantmaking falls within the following areas of expertise:
Arts, Culture, and Humanities
Our funds and programs celebrate the humanities and connect residents to the many artistic and
cultural activities that take place in our community.
Environment and Energy
Our funds support projects and programs that recognize the value of climate resiliency, which include
promoting energy efficiency, caring for farmland and open space, and reducing our impact on the planet.
Health and Human Services
We work to ensure our community members have access to the health information and quality of life services they need to function at their best.
Lifelong Learning
We are here to help build a community of life-long learners through a variety of professional development programs and scholarships.
Neighborhoods and Economic Development
We manage funds to enhance the places people care about in Berks County.
Types of Charitable Funds
Berks County Community Foundation helps people determine the type of fund that best suits their charitable goals. Nearly all our funds are customized in some way to help our donors achieve their philanthropic vision.
Thanks to the generosity of our donors, we distribute millions of dollars in grants and scholarships each year to nonprofits and individuals in our community. If you are interested in learning more about starting a fund with the Community Foundation, please reach out to give@bccf.org.
