News and updates about charitable funds making a difference in our communities! To learn more about all of our charitable funds in greater detail, please visit our website,
safdn.org.
New Charitable Fund Celebrates Milestone Birthday
The
Sondra G. and Morey M. Myers Charitable Gift Fund was established by Sondra and Morey Myers in honor of Mr. Myers’ 95th birthday which he celebrated in August.
The couple started the fund to inspire others to establish charitable funds at the Scranton Area Community Foundation.
“The Scranton Area Community Foundation is a real asset to donors, to donees and to the community at large. It is a go-to institution, making philanthropy easier and more efficient,” stated Sondra Gelb Myers.
Mr. Morey Myers and Mrs. Sondra Gelb Myers inside their Scranton home. Mr. Myers celebrated his 95th birthday in August.The
Sondra G. and Morey M. Myers Charitable Gift Fund is a donor-advised fund established to provide support to charitable endeavors in the Scranton Area important to the Myers family. The fund aims to provide charitable support for years to come. The Scranton Area Community Foundation is grateful to the Myers family for entrusting the Foundation to administer the Fund.
NEPA Invitational hosted by PGA Tour player Brandon Matthews raises $100,000 for charity
PGA Tour player Brandon Matthews presented the Scranton Area Community Foundation with a $100,000 donation during the NEPA Invitational charity event on October 16. The donation will support Geisinger Janet Weis Children’s Hospital through the NEPA Invitational Fund at the Scranton Area Community Foundation.
Matthews was born and raised in Northeastern Pennsylvania. A Pittston Area graduate, he established the NEPA Invitational Fund with a desire to give back to the community he grew up in. He partnered with the Scranton Area Community Foundation to help allocate the funds raised to local organizations in need.
Photo credit: The Country Club of Scranton
PGA Tour player Brandon Matthews presents Brittany Pagnotti of the Scranton Area Community Foundation with a $100,000 donation during the NEPA Invitational.“The Scranton Area Community Foundation is honored that Brandon and the NEPA Invitational have partnered with us to carry out the charitable goals of this event,” stated Laura Ducceschi, President and CEO of the Scranton Area Community Foundation. “His desire to give back is truly making a difference right here in our communities.”
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Shine Like Susan 5K raises $24,620 to fight colon cancer
Shine Like Susan 5K organizers recently presented a check in the amount of $24,620 to the family of Susan Burke to support the
Susan Burke Foundation for Colon Cancer Fund at the Scranton Area Community Foundation.
Susan Burke, a beloved community member and coach, lost her battle with colon cancer in July 2022.
The Susan Burke Foundation for Colon Cancer Fund at the Scranton Area Community Foundation was established in July by the family of Susan Burke to provide charitable support to individuals with a colon cancer diagnosis who are experiencing financial hardship.
A group of Abington Heights High School students from the Class of 2025 and members of the school’s cross country and track and field teams gathered earlier this summer to organize the
Shine Like Susan 5K, which took place on Labor Day morning, Monday, September 5, 2022, at Abington Heights Middle School, to benefit the Susan Burke Foundation for Colon Cancer at the Scranton Area Community Foundation. Dozens of people participated in the race.
The Scranton Area Community Foundation serves as administrator of
The Susan Burke Foundation for Colon Cancer Fund.
Shine Like Susan 5K organizers, who are all sophomores at Abington Heights High School, present a check in the amount of $24,620.30 to the family of Susan Burke to support the Susan Burke Foundation for Colon Cancer Fund at the Scranton Area Community Foundation. Standing (l-r): Elizabeth Schneider; Brock Pentasuglio; Abbey Burke; Katherine Fang; Jamie Ksiazek; Maggie Martinelli, Scranton Area Community Foundation Vice President of Administration and Operations; Jack Farrell, Shine Like Susan 5k founder and director; Conner Abel; Lauren Lockett. Kneeling (l-r): Hunter Pentasuglio; JT Healey; Tate Pentasuglio.
Humor Therapy Fund supports NAMI
Jeannine Luby, fund advisor to the
Humor Therapy Fund at the Scranton Area Community Foundation, recently presented a grant in the amount of $900 to Marie Onukiavage of the
National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Northeast Region of PA, a nonprofit organization focused on mental health. The grant will support a presentation by Gab Bonesso, an award-winning standup comedian, recognized as a Top 100 Speaker in the World on Mental Resilience.
The Humor Therapy Fund awards grants to local nonprofit organizations that wish to promote laughter and/or humor for the therapeutic benefit of their clients, staff, and/or the community at large. Whether a nonprofit organization wants to bring smiles to children, hold a comedy improv workshop to improve staff morale, or create a humor toolkit, the Humor Therapy Fund of the Scranton Area Community Foundation works to provide the necessary support.
To date, the fund has provided support to organizations including Laughing at My Nightmare, Volunteers in Medicine, Deutsch Institute, and VNA Hospice and Home Health.
Anyone with an interest in enriching the community through the power of humor and laughter can also contribute to the Humor Therapy Fund! To support
The Humor Therapy Fund at the Scranton Area Community Foundation, please visit the link below.
Support the Humor Therapy Fund
Together we are stronger
The Scranton Area Community Foundation offers a wide variety of charitable planning tools to help charitably-minded individuals and businesses support the causes they care about including donor-advised funds, scholarship funds, field of interest funds, non-endowed funds, charitable trusts, and charitable gift annuities. We even offer a 20% match (up to $5,000) in the first two years for newly established endowment funds!
The Scranton Area Community Foundation has been working to enhance the quality of life for people across the Northeastern Pennsylvania region since 1954, serving the community as a steward, a grantmaker, a charitable resource, and a catalyst for change and growth. The Foundation leads various initiatives including Women in Philanthropy, the Center for Community Leadership and Nonprofit Excellence, NEPA Moves, NEPA Thrives, and the NEPA Animal Welfare Collaborative. Additionally, the Foundation hosts and facilitates NEPA Gives, a one-day online giving event annually in June, and the NEPA Learning Conference, which brings in locally and nationally recognized speakers.
The Scranton Area Community Foundation is a public 501(c)(3) community foundation with assets of more than $57 million and more than 275 charitable funds. The Scranton Area Community Foundation serves as the administrator to the Northeastern Pennsylvania Health Care Foundation and the Robert H. Spitz Foundation. Through its foundation management services offered to other private and public foundations, the Scranton Area Community Foundation additionally manages assets of more than $36 million. More information about the Scranton Area Community Foundation can be found at safdn.org. 
