The Humphrey-Hooper Foundation: A legacy of giving

“Linda and I always felt that our first obligation is to our family,” said Jim Humphrey, Chairman & CEO of The Humphrey Companies. “You have an obligation to prepare them for life. Then after that, you’ve got to turn to your community, your neighborhood.”

Jim and Linda Humphrey are people who believe in working hard and sharing the rewards. That’s why in November 2019, they established the Humphrey-Hooper Foundation to ensure the work ethic that they instilled their daughter, Bethany Hooper, and the fruits of her labor would be recognized. Through the foundation, Bethany, President & Owner of Humphrey Management, can continue the Humphreys’ legacy of supporting the causes they care about in Anne Arundel County, in perpetuity. At the same time, the $2.6 million gift will provide annual support to the Community Foundation of Anne Arundel County (CFAAC) for a number of years, enabling them to continue their leadership work in the community and to ensure the Community Foundation’s future sustainability.

“I can’t tell you how grateful we are to receive this gift and know that we have a solid foundation for CFAAC.” said Mary Spencer, CFAAC’s CEO & President. “The Humphreys are strategic in their thinking. They are really focused on the future of this organization and where their funds can be best used.”

The Humphreys are humble about the gift. “We just want to quietly find the causes that are really contributing to the community and help them out,” said Jim, CFAAC Board Vice Chair. “It’s always been a tenant that one of our obligations is to give back for the fortune that was bestowed on us. We’ve always committed that whatever resources we developed in our career we were going to leave to a charitable nonprofit trust. And, then we found the Community Foundation and they do that work for us.”

It was after being recognized as the CFAAC Philanthropists of the Year in 2010, that the Humphreys wanted to find out more about CFAAC. And, the more they found out, the more they were impressed. “I decided to talk with CFAAC when Linda and I began thinking about setting up a foundation,” said Jim. “When you set up your own foundation, there’s a lot of technicalities, a lot of lawyers and accountants, but the community foundation just offered a plan that was so simple. The more I looked at it, the more I liked it.”

It was in 2017 that they established the Jim and Linda Humphrey Foundation, a donor-advised fund. In 2019, the formation of the Humphrey-Hooper Foundation was a way for the Humphreys to get their daughter engaged, said Jim. “We want our children to be cognizant of their community and the needs of their community so it was a way to get them involved, too. And, we’ve been pleased as punch,” he said of CFAAC. “It’s a terrific vehicle for people who want to support their community. I like everything they have to offer and the product is just unbelievable – a very, very meaningful product offered by an organization that‘s well run.”

Humphrey added that while people have a right to enjoy the fruits of their labor, he believes that it’s also their duty to give back to society. “That’s what Bill Gates and Warren Buffet and others are trying to promote and I think it is one of the best movements that’s come around in this country,” he said. “The joy is in creating the resources, and then giving the money to the people who are really working on the problems in their communities. Community foundations are the perfect vehicle.”