Erie Community Foundation Makes Impact in 2020
Charitable organization timely in its support of community
by Matt Swanseger
Facebook @ErieCommunityFoundation
It's fitting that the Erie Community Foundation's origins reside with Boston Store co-founder Elisha H. Mack. Just like the store's iconic clock, one of the Foundation's defining features has been its timeliness. And in 2020, during the region's hours of greatest need, the charitable organization delivered at a moment's notice.
Shortly after the cruel hand of the pandemic struck last March, the Foundation countered by raising $667,801 for 41 local nonprofits in just two weeks. The highlight was a $168,000 grant to the Second Harvest Food Bank, which went toward 600 emergency boxes providing meals and nutrition to Northwest Pennsylvania's neediest families. Throughout the year, the Foundation was forced to shuffle its funding timelines as new challenges surfaced practically by the minute.