A philanthropic nonprofit like the Community Foundation of Anne Arundel County doesn’t learn about its community from behind a desk. Truly understanding local needs begins with showing up, listening closely, attending events and working alongside nonprofit leaders and partner organizations to learn where challenges and opportunities overlap.

Community foundations like CFAAC stay connected to the nonprofits and donors they serve through various means — first, through their volunteer board. Board members are an integral part of the community foundation’s understanding of the region it serves. They offer invaluable insight shaped by their lived experiences and reflect the community through their varied professions, ethnicities, financial backgrounds, ages and geographic locations within the county. A community foundation board does more than provide essential governance and fiduciary oversight; it is often deeply connected to the heartbeat of local neighborhoods. CFAAC’s board meets regularly on a formal basis, but trustees are also involved by attending nonprofit site visits and local events, taking part in nonprofit grant reviews and engaging with local organizations.

Likewise, community foundation staff are active through volunteerism, attending county events, speaking engagements, educational programs, nonprofit site visits and participation in various community-centric organizations such as professional networking groups and giving circles. For example, in 2025, the nine-person CFAAC staff participated in more than 330 community happenings.

Community foundations often work with expert partners to gather relevant data about the areas they serve. CFAAC works with Dr. Pam Brown, executive director of the Anne Arundel County Partnership for Children, Youth and Families, to conduct a community needs assessment every three years. This assessment helps us gain data-informed, qualitative insight into needs, gaps in services, disparities and representative community voices so that we can formulate grant-making strategies and educational programming initiatives to best serve Anne Arundel County. CFAAC shares this information with local government, residents and nonprofits.

Nonprofit site visits are an important part of how community foundations understand the needs of the nonprofit world and the people they serve. They are often the best way to see programs in action, build relationships, understand the daily operations and build support beyond grant-making. It’s not uncommon that after these outings, organizations gain new volunteers because the visits often evoke empathy and understanding of a nonprofit’s successes and challenges.

Many community foundations belong to national organizations such as the Council on Foundations as well as local ones such as the Maryland Community Foundations Association, Maryland Philanthropy Network and Maryland Nonprofits to learn about other community foundations’ accomplishments, strategies and obstacles. Sharing advice, policies and connections creates an environment of support in this network. For example, during the Francis Scott Key Bridge disaster, CFAAC worked with the Baltimore Community Foundation to garner support and direct donations. And community foundation support doesn’t have to be localized — community foundations across the nation work together to provide philanthropic support when there are disasters or crises such as floods, earthquakes or wildfires.

Perhaps most importantly, community foundations are in touch with local nonprofit leadership and staff through conversations, listening sessions, educational programs, grant reviews and the aforementioned site visits. Knowing what nonprofits need in order to serve their communities beyond funding is essential to a community foundation’s purpose. Directly communicating with nonprofit staff helps formulate their grantmaking and educational programming for the future. For instance, CFAAC often works with Anne Arundel County’s new Nonprofit Center to cohost programs. CFAAC also hosts the Anna Greenberg Board Leadership Symposium, gathering best practices from successful nonprofit boards and sharing that expertise with county nonprofit members.

Community foundations act as conveners, encouraging collaboration among donors, nonprofits and government agencies to discuss needs, challenges and solutions to benefit the community as a whole. They serve as expert philanthropic advisers because of their close relationship with nonprofits, donors and financial advisers, stewarding donations to where they are needed most.

You can learn more about your local community foundation by visiting cfaac.org.

This article originally appeared in The Capital Gazette on March 2, 2026.