Photo on the home page: Stuart Dorsett, NCCF board chair, at the podium; and Jennifer Tolle Whiteside, NCCF CEO and president, seated.

Check out our Flickr slide show of the day’s events here!

NCCF celebrated a banner day Friday, Oct. 25, when we brought many of our affiliate leaders, board members, fundholders and friends together at the Umsead in Cary for a day of workshops and a celebration to commemorate our 25th year.

Fifty-nine affiliate board chairs and grants chairs representing 38 affiliates, as well as members of the statewide board, began with a morning session about NCCF’s future, entitled, “What We Learned from the Affiliate Impact Listening Tour,” led by Steve Alley of Ekstrom and Associates, with members of the Affiliate Impact Committee. This was followed by a session led by NCCF Statewide Board Member Linda Staunch on “Understanding our Affiliate and What Makes us Tick.”

Our numbers swelled to nearly 170 as we gathered for a luncheon celebration that included fundholders, donors, past board members and friends of the Foundation. Highlights included a video just recently produced about NCCF to help tell our story (link on home page!) and a keynote by Dr. James Johnson, UNC Kenan Distinguished Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship, who spoke on the impact of changing demographics in our state. (A link to his slides is here and updates may be posted soon.)

NCCF Board Chairman Stuart Dorsett welcomed everyone to the luncheon, proclaiming the Foundation’s first quarter-century one worth celebrating. “You represent the very best of the North Carolina Community Foundation,” he said. “Your work, dedication, vision and generosity have helped us reach the milestone we celebrate today — and will carry us into the next century and beyond.”

NCCF CEO and President Jennifer Tolle Whiteside said NCCF was well-positioned for the future. “We are, at 25 years of age, not completely grown up,” she said. “But we have reached a milestone in our service, support and reach across North Carolina, and we are poised and ready to move toward the next stage of our development.”

NCCF’s statewide board adjourned for its quarterly meeting after lunch. Affiliate participants convened for afternoon sessions entitled, “Having the Most Impact with our Grant Dollars” and “Raising Visibility for our Affiliates.” The grants workshop was led by moderator Laurie Taylor of the New Hanover County Community Foundation, with Chris Griffin of the Community Foundation of Randolph County; Thomas Ritter, Macon County Community Foundation; and Howard Wasserman, Wake County Community Foundation, serving as panelists. The visibility workshop was led by Noel McLaughlin, NCCF director of marketing and communications, with panelists Carol Coulter, Ashe County Community Foundation; Ed Wilson, Wayne County Community Foundation; Sally Migliore, NCCF director of community leadership; and Peggy Birkemeier, recently retired NCCF senior regional associate for the northeast.

Handouts for Forum participants are available on a password protected page on our website, according to Migliore, who chaired the Affiliate Forum. Look also for our Flickr slideshow of the day, coming soon!

NCCF would like to thank our event sponsors and supporters:

Sponsors
Fidelity Bank
First Citizens Bank
First Tennessee Bank
Myriad Media
PNC
Poyner Spruill, LLP
Ward & Smith, PA
Wells Fargo Bank 

Supporters
Accent Imaging/Lenovo
CateringWorks
Umstead Hotel and Spa