Berks County Community Foundation’s 2026 Annual Report, A Year of Momentum, is here!
Access stories and reports about our donors, grantmaking, programs and initiatives by clicking below.
The Met-Ed/Penelec Sustainable Energy Fund (SEF) seeks a nominee for its volunteer Advisory Board.
The Met-Ed/Penelec SEF distributes funds to promote the development and use of renewable energy and clean energy technologies, energy conservation and efficiency, and projects that improve the environment in the Met-Ed and Penelec service territories. The Met-Ed/Penelec SEF is co-managed by Berks County Community Foundation and the Community Foundation for the Alleghenies, respectively.
The funds are seeking nominations for the FirstEnergy Affiliate seat. Those that are employees of or affiliated with FirstEnergy are eligible.
The Advisory Board consists of no fewer than seven and no more than nine positions. Board members can serve six two-year terms. The Advisory Board meets four times per year on a quarterly basis. Meetings are typically held via Zoom, with the possibility of in-person meetings within the Met-Ed and Penelec service territories.
For consideration, candidates should meet the following criteria:
- Be a resident of Pennsylvania that is affiliated with the Met-Ed or Penelec rate district (preferred)
- Have interpersonal skills that foster a creative and positive work environment for Board meetings
- Have the ability to work with fellow board members and fund staff to evaluate incoming projects and programs for their mission-fit, participate in technical and financial due diligence discussions, and determine project impact.
- Have demonstrated experience in working with Pennsylvania’s sustainable energy sector
Interested candidates should submit a brief letter of interest and a resume to Emily Smedley (Berks County Community Foundation/Met-Ed) or Mark Keim (Community Foundation for the Alleghenies/Penelec.) Their contact information is below. The letter should provide details on how the candidate fulfills the nomination criteria and the skills they bring to the advisory board. The resume should provide contact information and the candidate’s educational and work experience.
Nominations should be submitted by December 7, 2026.
All candidates will be notified via email upon receipt of their letter of interest and resume. The advisory board will submit the successful nominee(s) to the Pennsylvania Public Utilities Commission for final approval.
Contact Information
In the Met-Ed rate district, please contact Emily Smedley:
Environment and Energy Program Officer, Berks County Community Foundation
Fund Manager, Met-Ed Sustainable Energy Fund
Emilys@bccf.org
In the Penelec rate district, please contact Mark Keim:
Program Officer, Community Foundation for the Alleghenies
Fund Manager, Penelec Sustainable Energy Fund
mkeim@cfalleghenies.org
This announcement is made in keeping with the best practices of the Pennsylvania Sustainable Energy Board (PASEB) and is being distributed on the websites of the Public Utility Commission and the Met-Ed/ Penelec Sustainable Energy Fund, as well as relevant newsletters and other sources. This notice may be forwarded to interested parties.
In the late 1980s, Berks County, like many communities across America, experienced the onset of the global HIV/AIDS epidemic. The loss our region felt due to this disease was insurmountable, and it continues to affect our Berks community today.
Amidst this public health crisis, local leaders emerged to coordinate care, disseminate accurate information, and provide a place for HIV-positive individuals to live in dignity and peace. This network of physicians, clergy members, business owners and Berks residents helped found Rainbow Home of Wernersville State Hospital, Berks AIDS Health Crisis, and Berks AIDS Network, which now operates as Co-County Wellness Services.
“The Community Foundation believes supporting our community goes beyond our grantmaking and programming,” said Monica Reyes, Vice President for Programs and Initiatives. Reyes engaged local writer Jason Brudereck to interview local stakeholders and write the history. “By documenting our communal history and sharing it with the public, we can wield lessons from the past to create a more equitable and healthy future for all Berks Countians”
Find the historical document below or visit https://issuu.com/bccf2024/docs/a_berks_county_public_health_history_a_community to read. We hope it is an inspiring and insightful glance into what Berks County is capable of when we work together.
Written by Jason Brudereck. Designed by Jennifer Heydt.
The Schuylkill River Trail: Why Local Trails Matter
There is something about fall that makes getting outside especially inviting. As the summer heat gives way to cooler temperatures and the leaves begin to turn shades of red, orange, and gold, it’s an ideal time to lace up your walking shoes or grab a bike and spend some time on a local trail.
Here in Berks County, we’re lucky to have thirty-plus miles to explore on the Schuylkill River Trail – with 80 total miles stretching from Schuylkill County to the city of Philadelphia.
Local trails give us a different way to experience our communities. Instead of simply driving through a familiar area, walking or biking allows us to slow down and notice the river, trees, wildlife, and changing seasons that are easy to overlook. When we regularly walk beside a river, through a forest or across an open landscape, those places become familiar. We notice when the water is high, when wildflowers appear, when birds return, and when leaves begin to change. That familiarity can help build a connection and appreciation for protecting the natural resources surrounding our communities.
The Schuylkill River Trail is a local gem, with routes passing through rural, agricultural, suburban, urban, and industrial landscapes. The trail and surrounding National Heritage Area have transformed how residents and visitors experience one of Pennsylvania’s most important natural resources. The trail plays an important role in preserving history while expanding recreational access and protecting the environment for future generations.
As the trail grows in length and popularity, and as increasingly severe storms blow through our region, so do the costs of caring for the trail.
In Berks County, the Schuylkill River Trail was built and continues to be maintained by Schuylkill River Greenways (SRG) National Heritage Area. When a sinkhole or a logjam happens, or a catastrophic storm hits our region, SRG is responsible for returning the trail to the safe and accessible resource our community depends on.
Anyone who loves the trail can be part of its future by donating to SRG’s Stewardship Fund. The Stewardship Fund is designed to tackle the major repairs that come with owning and maintaining a growing trail network, particularly projects that are too large for routine maintenance budgets and often ineligible for traditional grants. SRG is currently in the last year of the five-year fundraising campaign to raise $5 million to provide sustainable funding for these challenges and currently has $1.5 million left to raise over the next nine months.
You do not have to travel far to enjoy the outdoors this season. The more we use and appreciate our local trails, the more we recognize what valuable community resources they are. Our trails connect us not only to destinations, but to nature, history, our neighbors and the places we call home.
National Estate Planning Awareness Week is October 19 through 25.
This comes on the heels of August’s Make-A-Will Month. A reminder to “make a will” is good advice, of course, but a thoughtful estate plan usually involves much more than a single document. And if charitable giving is important to you, making sure all the pieces work together can be especially important.
Think about the different ways assets can pass at death. Some assets may be distributed under a will or according to the terms of a revocable trust. Other assets—including IRAs, retirement plan accounts, life insurance policies, and certain financial accounts—may pass according to beneficiary designations or “transfer on death” designations.
All of this means creating the legacy you envision requires thinking not only about who and what you want to support, but also about how particular assets will get there. For example, suppose you would like part of your estate eventually to support charitable causes through the Community Foundation. Depending on your circumstances and goals, you and your estate planning advisors might consider approaches such as:
- —Naming a fund at the Community Foundation as a beneficiary of an IRA or other retirement account. You can generally designate a charitable beneficiary to receive all or a percentage of your IRA or retirement account, while leaving other assets to family members or other beneficiaries. Traditional retirement accounts can be particularly worth discussing with your advisors because distributions that may be taxable to individual beneficiaries generally can be received by a qualified charitable organization—including the Community Foundation—without the same income tax burden.
- —Leaving a specific dollar amount through your will or trust. Perhaps you want $25,000, $100,000, or another amount to establish or add to a fund at the Community Foundation. Your attorney can incorporate the appropriate language into your estate planning documents.
- —Leaving a percentage of your estate through your will or trust. Instead of specifying a dollar amount, you might direct that a percentage of your estate passes to a charitable fund. A percentage gift can adjust along with the value of your estate over time.
- —Creating a fund to support favorite organizations or causes. Your estate gift could establish or add to a designated fund benefiting an organization you care about, or a field-of-interest fund supporting an issue or area of interest that has been meaningful to you.
- —Leaving a gift to meet changing community needs. You might instead leave all or a percentage of your estate as an unrestricted gift to the Community Foundation. This approach entrusts the Community Foundation to put charitable dollars to work where they can make an important difference as community needs and opportunities change over time.
These approaches do not necessarily have to stand alone! Charitable components of your estate plan might incorporate more than one document, beneficiary designation, asset, or type of fund to accomplish your goals. What’s more, setting up a charitable giving structure is especially important if you are anticipating a business exit at some point in the future.
National Estate Planning Awareness Week is an opportunity to look at your entire estate plan and ask whether your documents and beneficiary designations work together to reflect the people, organizations, and community you want to support.
Berks County Community Foundation team would be honored to help you think about how it can become part of your legacy, too. We can work alongside your attorney, CPA, and financial advisor to help you explore charitable options and determine what type of fund may best carry out your intentions for years—and perhaps generations—to come.
Listen to the latest episode of Sparking Change: The Official Podcast of Berks County Community Foundation, titled “Berks Youth are Raising their VOiCEs”.
This episode of “Sparking Change” features Casey Trexler, Director of Operations at VOiCEup Berks, an organization whose mission is to mobilize and empower young changemakers to shape more equitable communities through service learning.
Throughout the episode, listeners will learn about VOiCEup’s beginnings, international recognition for their impactful programming, as well as what is in store for the organization’s future. Monica Reyes, Vice President for Programs and Initiatives, hosts the conversation.
Connect with Casey Trexler by emailing her at casey@voiceupberks.org
Connect with Monica Reyes by calling the foundation at 610-685-2223.
The mission of Berks County Community Foundation is to promote philanthropy and improve the quality of life for Berks County residents.
Other ways to listen to “Solar in Berks County Schools”:
Spotify
Apple Podcasts
Amazon Music
Don’t see your preferred podcast streaming platform? Reach out.
Not everyone gets to see their parents turn 100 years old, but Berks County Community Foundation does.
This year, Berks County celebrates a remarkable milestone: the 100th anniversary of The Wyomissing Foundation, an institution whose influence reaches far beyond its grantmaking.
Founded in 1926 by Wyomissing Industries visionary leaders, Ferdinand Thun, Henry Janssen and Gustav Oberlaender, the Foundation has spent a century investing not only in organizations, but also in ideas, partnerships, and community assets that continue to enrich the lives of Berks County residents today. While Janssen and Oberlaender ultimately left to start their own foundations (the Gustav Oberlaender Foundation became a fund of the Community Foundation), descendants of Ferdinand Thun continue to serve on the board today.
Perhaps one of the Foundation’s most enduring legacies is its role in creating and nurturing institutions that have become essential parts of Berks County’s civic infrastructure.
The Foundation also helped spark the creation and growth of organizations that have shaped our region’s environmental future. Berks Nature has become a leading advocate for environmental stewardship, conservation, and outdoor education across the county. Likewise, the Schuylkill River Greenways National Heritage Area has transformed how residents and visitors experience one of Pennsylvania’s most important natural resources, preserving history while expanding recreational access and protecting the environment for future generations. They were a founding partner in the effort to establish the Berks Community Health Center, a central part of our effort to approve local health outcomes.
In fact, a list of local organizations who haven’t been strengthened by the Wyomissing Foundation’s efforts would be easier to develop than a list of those who have. There might not be any, and of course, we wouldn’t be on that list.
In 1994, a working group of The Wyomissing Foundation established Berks County Community Foundation. They built the first Board of Directors, provided the seed funding (and credibility) and gave us everything we needed to get started (my first few paychecks even came from the Wyomissing Foundation). It’s an example of an ethos that has marked their work: They put in more than just money; they make investments of intellectual capital and elbow grease.
As we celebrate this extraordinary anniversary, we also celebrate the countless trustees, volunteers, staff members, community partners, and donors who have carried forward the Foundation’s mission across generations. Their collective leadership has helped create a community where philanthropy, civic engagement, and collaboration continue to flourish.
Congratulations to The Wyomissing Foundation on 100 years of service, leadership, and impact. Berks County is stronger because of the vision of your founders and those who helped realize that vision.
Here’s to the next century of catalyzing change.
Berks County Community Foundation is not the only grantmaking organization in the community and certainly not the oldest. This year, we’re noting the centennial anniversaries of two of our great colleague organizations whose service to, and impact on, Berks County’s quality of life predates ours by 68 years.
In 1926, a financial crisis threatened the future of some local music groups, including the fledgling Reading Symphony Orchestra. A group of fifteen local people gathered to create the Reading Musical Foundation (RMF) to generate funding to ensure the sustainability of music offerings in the community. For a century, the organization has been a key funder for music organizations like the Symphony, the Reading Choral Society, and many more.
What began as a mission to sustain a handful of cultural institutions evolved into something much larger. In 1971, RMF began awarding scholarships, which is a central function of the organization today. They work to make sure that Berks County students with talent have an opportunity to develop their skills, regardless of their ability to pay.
Their “Operation Replay” accepts gifts of used musical instruments and pairs them with children who can’t afford to purchase them. This gives kids a head start in music education that would otherwise not be available to them.
RMF’s uniquely talented president, Keri Shultz, is also a fierce advocate for music education in the public schools. You don’t need to be around Shultz for very long before she’ll remind you that children who take music lessons perform better academically by almost any measure. And if you’re a school board that’s even thinking about cutting the marching band budget, you’ll hear from her and a cadre of volunteers.
At the Community Foundation, we feel fortunate to have RMF as a colleague organization. Their depth of knowledge and breadth of connections have often been a great asset to our donors. And, we’re aware that they’re unique. In thirty-two years, I’ve not found another community with an organization that operates as RMF does. Berks County is lucky to have such an advocate.
Congratulations to Reading Musical Foundation on 100 years of leadership and unwavering commitment to the musical life of Berks County. It’s a legacy that can be heard in every performance, every lesson, every scholarship recipient, and every young musician whose life has been changed by the gift of music.
Here’s to the next century of making music possible.
Next week: We celebrate a century of The Wyomissing Foundation.
Listen to the latest episode of Sparking Change: The Official Podcast of Berks County Community Foundation, titled “Solar in Berks County Schools”.
Generation 180 is a national nonprofit helping individuals find clean energy solutions, which believes that schools are a good fit for implementing community-based solar projects.
Shannon Crooker, PA Director at Generation 180, sits down with Emily Smedley, Environment and Energy Program Officer of Berks County Community Foundation, to discuss emerging solar projects in Berks County schools. Crooker explains the health, financial, and ecological benefit of schools going solar–and how school leadership can utilize grant opportunities to get started on their solar journey.
Learn more about Generation 180’s Solar for All Schools program by clicking here.
Connect with Shannon Crooker by emailing her at shannon.crooker@generation180.org.
Connect with Emily Smedley by calling the foundation at 610-685-2223.
The mission of Berks County Community Foundation is to promote philanthropy and improve the quality of life for Berks County residents.
Other ways to listen to “Solar in Berks County Schools”:
Spotify
Apple Podcasts
Amazon Music
Don’t see your preferred podcast streaming platform? Reach out.
Since it was established in 2018, the Marian S. Snyder Fund of Berks County Community Foundation has made a seismic impact on local, state, and national organizations.
The fund, which names six organizations to which grants can be awarded, distributed $680,400.00 in fiscal year 2026. This most recent grant cycle brings the total amount granted to $4,564,206.50 since 2018.
But who are the beneficiaries of the Marian S. Snyder Fund, and who exactly was Marian Snyder? The first question is easier to answer than the latter.
Within the fund agreement signed on September 18, 2018, the Estate of Marian S. Snyder designated the following organizations as potential grant beneficiaries:
- Berks County Association for the Blind (now known as Vision Resource Center of Berks County.)
- Foundation for the Reading Public Museum
- Berks Visiting Nurse Association (now closed; Tower Health at Home acquired the association’s clients and contracts). Funding therefore goes to Tower Health at Home.
As a part of Mrs. Snyder’s estate planning, she expressed her wishes for Berks County Community Foundation to make distributions to one or more of the organizations identified, so long as they apply the funding toward creating a more sustainable and effective business model. Simply put, Marian Snyder wanted to help these organizations grow and thrive for a long, long time.
The organizations the Marian S. Snyder Fund supports tout impressive offerings and programming. $60,000 of the most recent grant cycle was awarded to American Cancer Society (ACS) for the Philadelphia Hope Lodge, which provides lodging, transportation, and an array of support services for Berks County cancer patients receiving care in the greater Philadelphia area.
Vision Resource Center of Berks County received $45,000 in that same grant cycle for marketing and the installation of a security system. The center provides free services, vision screenings, meaningful employment, and a Low Vision Store to enhance independent living. A security system that can adequately alert individuals across the visual impairment spectrum is necessary for the safety and comfort of all its visitors.
In 2024, Berks County Community Foundation distributed $250,000 from the Marian S. Snyder Fund to the Foundation for the Reading Public Museum in support of construction and renovations to the building, as well as the hiring of a full-time development team member.
Animal Rescue League (ARL) of Berks County offers medical and animal control services, animal surrender prevention support, and animal cruelty investigation services. In fiscal year 2026, $135,400 was awarded to ARL of Berks County for staff development, facility upgrades, expanded veterinary services, modern equipment, and targeted community outreach.
Humane Pennsylvania’s Healthy Pets Initiative (HPI) seeks to provide meaningful access to veterinary care that anyone can afford. From a full service, nationally accredited animal hospital, to walk-in wellness clinics and pay-what-you can neighborhood vaccination clinics, HPI has ways for everyone to get their pets critical health care. The expanded pet food pantry, which is open seven days a week at each Berks adoption center, features kiosks for improved accessibility. In fiscal year 2026, the Marian S. Snyder Fund supported HPI and the pet food pantry with a $100,000 grant.
The last grant made in fiscal year 2026 from the Marian S. Snyder Fund of Berks County Community Foundation was distributed to Tower Health at Home; this home healthcare program allows patients to recover from illness or manage chronic conditions in the comfort of their homes, surrounded by their loved ones. $90,000 was granted for the purchase of 5G-enabled iPads to implement Comfort, the Hospice component of Epic, an electronic health record (EHR) platform. The iPads and Comfort aim to enhance patient safety and efficiency.
Cindy Milian, Health and Human Services Program Officer, is not the only Community Foundation team member to know Marian S. Snyder through charitable legacy alone. In fact, very little is known about the Berks County philanthropist. What we do know was discovered through obituaries and other county records.
Marian S. (Schaffer) Snyder was a graduate of Kutztown State Teachers College, now Kutztown University, and was certified to teach English, geography, history and social studies. After college, she completed a course of study at McCann School of Business, now known as Berks Technical Institute (BTI).
She worked as a secretary for 15 years at American Casualty Company, later CNA, first for the company’s personnel director and later for the president. After her marriage to fellow Berks Countian and Attorney Fredrick R. Snyder, she assisted her husband in his law practice part time until his retirement, soon before his death.
Attorney Frederick Snyder was a 1935 graduate of Reading High School, a 1939 graduate of Princeton University, and a 1943 graduate of the University of Pennsylvania Law School. He attended Harvard Law School and served in the Army Signal Corps, 111th Radio Intelligence Company in the South Pacific. In 1943, after graduating from law school in Philadelphia, Frederick was admitted to the Berks County Court of Common Pleas and the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania. In 1956, Frederick was admitted to the United States District Court and then the Supreme Court of the United States of America in 1968. Fredrick remained an active member of the Berks community until his death in 2006; he was a member of Grace Lutheran Church in Reading and held leadership positions in organizations including the Exchange Club of Reading, Reading YMCA, the Masonic Center Foundation of Reading, and the Reading Fair.
For her part, Marian was a member of several civic and social organizations in Berks County before her death in 2018. She would have been honored as a 50-year member of the Order of the Eastern Star, Reading Chapter #251, had she not passed before the celebration could take place.
One could assume that Fredrick and Marian Snyder bonded over shared values of service and community. Marian Snyder’s bequest to the Community Foundation ensures her charitable legacy lasts forever.
“Leaving a bequest to the Community Foundation is one way for those who are philanthropic to support the community they love long after they are gone. Marian Snyder had the foresight to create a plan to support the organizations and causes that meant the most to her,” says Molly McCullough Robbins, Vice President for Philanthropic Services.
Berks County Community Foundation believes anyone can make a difference in our community. While the funds we manage range in size and scope, the meaningful support each fund provides cannot be compared to one another: support is felt, not weighed. In the case of Marian S. Snyder, her fund tells us she loved animals and cared about accessible and dignified healthcare; she valued the arts and culture; she knew philanthropy played a major role in the sustainability of the causes she loved, and she planned to give generously.
Are you interested in planning for future support of the causes you love? You can also create your own fund to benefit the causes and organizations you love by visiting Plan Your Giving.
