In a difficult year, we witnessed Evanstonians coming together to support those in need and helping the community recover and rebuild. Read our 2020 Annual Report: A Year Like No Other. 

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A GOOD PLACE FOR ALL

A more equitable and inclusive Evanston has been our mission for over 30 years. We're invested in our home. 

The Now! Fund invests in the immediate work of the Foundation. Your donation supports ECF and enables us to make grants, bring new ideas to fruition, and mobilize people, ideas, and talent. Consider a gift today.

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News & Events

Read ECF's President and CEO Sol Anderson's response to the recent lawsuit against District 65.

Save the date to join ECF at Celebrate!Evanston on Saturday, September 25. It will be an outdoor reunion to support the Now! Fund.

ECF names Sol Anderson as President & CEO.

View the June 30 ECF Annual Meeting event video to watch some of Evanston’s nonprofit leaders tell their stories of Resilience during Covid. The Meet and Greet Zoom meeting with ECF's President and CEO, Sol Anderson, is also available for viewing. 

Last year was challenging in so many ways! Our community has emerged - and we are prepared to Reimagine what Evanston can be. Read ECF’s 2020 Annual Report and learn how the community relieved, recovered, rebuilt and rallied around our neighbors and our nonprofit community.

Apply to join the 30th Leadership Evanston Signature Program cohort. Learn more about the program and how to apply by mid-August. 

Meet two of ECF’s newest board members to learn about what makes them tick – and how they envision Evanston’s bright future.

The Reparations Stakeholders Authority of Evanston (RSAE) announced the establishment of the Evanston Reparations Community Fund. The Fund will provide investment support for efforts in advancing Evanston’s Reparations Program and will be housed at ECF.

Evanston Care Network is a new collaborative partnership among ECF, Evanston 311, the Evanston Public Library, Amita Health, and the City of Evanston. NPOs are encouraged to provide a listing to the network.

Sobre la Fundación. ¡Se habla español! La oficina de Evanston Community Foundation (ECF) es bilingüe. Para servir a nuestra communidad de una manera mas efectiva, favor de contactarnos al 847-492-0990 o mándarnos un correo electrónico.

ECF's work during covid-19 crisis

ECRRF_logo_for_Dropdown_Alert_103x62px.gifSince mid-March, 2020 Evanston Community Foundation has radically expanded its fundraising and restructured its grantmaking and programs to respond to the new world we find ourselves in. 

By March 18, 2020 ECF launched the Evanston Community Rapid Response Fund with $100,000 seed money from endowment to foster a unified philanthropic response to address the impact of the novel coronavirus COVID-19 in the Evanston community. As of April 15, 2021 generous Evanstonians have contributed over $4.4 million to the Fund.

ECF immediately created a strategic vision for the use of the Fund, focused on relief, recovery, and rebuilding. Learn more about that strategy and exactly how over $4.6 million in ECRR Fund and other ECF funds have been invested in the community since March 23, 2020. New grant opportunities were launched, focused on immediate basic needs, collective and enduring initiatives, and operating support for nonprofits. And while we continue to fund relief, ECF has begun supporting efforts to help the community recover.

Learn about resources for nonprofits.