Celebrate 15 years of community giving at a gala event this Sunday evening.
The Williamsburg Community Foundation is marking its anniversary with a night of food, music and dancing open to community leaders and those who want to learn more about the organization’s work in the area.
WCF executive director Nancy Cote Sullivan said the foundation, which invests and distributes funds to local organizations in need, has grown considerably over the years. Started as part of the City of Williamsburg’s 300th birthday in 1999, WCF has increased its assets from $100,000 at the end of that year to a current total of $4.8 million.
Twice every year, WCF announces a request for proposals from nonprofits in the service area within the Historic Triangle. A volunteer committee reviews and selects groups to receive grants from the endowment fund. WCF supports education, arts and environmental groups — “everything from defibrillators that go into police cars to Literacy for Life,” according to Sullivan.
Tickets for Sunday’s gala in the Virginia Room at the Williamsburg Lodge will support the discretionary grant-making. Proceeds from the first gala established the community endowment, and the event has been held regularly since then.
“We do this every five years to celebrate where we come from and where we’re going to,” Sullivan said.
This year’s celebration will honor one special contributor to the foundation.
WCF will bestow the inaugural Founder’s Award for Vision and Excellence to John C. Jamison. In addition to many years spent on the foundation board, Sullivan credits Jamison as a major force in the growth of the group’s endowment.
Jamison’s goal when he retired from the board in 2007 was to increase WCF’s pool of funds to $1 million. He saw that dream achieved in two and a half years, in part because of a matching challenge of $300,000.
His award will be presented at the gala, along with an update on the foundation, but Sullivan promises the talking will be kept to a minimum.
The reception starts at 6 p.m. Guests will feast on a seated dinner by the chefs of the Williamsburg Lodge, following by dancing the music of Jeremy Davis and the Fabulous Equinox Orchestra. The big band hails from Savannah, Ga., to play a high-energy stage show of classic American music.
Tickets are not available at the door but can be purchased in advance through Thursday for $200 per person, either online or by calling 259-1660. Sponsorship packages are also available.
For more information, visit the WCF website.
