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Services Overview
Explore our giving tools and services
Donor Advised Funds
Create a giving account—support the causes you care about most
Legacy Giving
Secure your impact for future generations through estate planning
Mission Investing
Invest in Vermont projects that reflect your values
Nonprofit Funds
Ensure lasting support for your mission-driven organization
Other Ways to Give
Explore other types of charitable funds and ways to make a difference
Your Impact
Learn about our fundholders and the difference they make
Impact Stories
Read how your grants impact the community around you
Donor Stories
Read how other donors have made a difference
Reports + Publications
View our latest annual report (and more)
Give Now to Existing Funds
Contribute to the VCF's programs in real-time
Strategic Initiatives
From immediate disaster response to our systemic work closing the opportunity gap
The Opportunity Gap
No one should be held back by their zip code, income level, the color of their skin, or any aspect of their identity
People + Places Funds
Supporting a variety of regions, communities, and people in Vermont
Philanthropic Leadership Fund
Supporting the work that goes beyond grant-making to strengthen Vermont's philanthropic network
Crisis + Disaster Giving
Helping Vermonters through disasters and developing strategies to mitigate future devastation
Supporting Organizations
Our partners play a crucial role in childcare, youth programs, and education and training for promising jobs
About Us
About the Vermont Community Foundation
Financials + Investments
Diverse investments and expert management
Our Team
Blending small-town charm with big-hearted philanthropy
Careers
Join our dedicated team of Vermonters
News + Announcements
Stay connected with our latest news and announcements
Contact + Directions
Where to find us and how to reach us
When Lisa Cashdan and her husband Peter Stein moved to Vermont from New York City 34 years ago, they knew they were trading a bustling, urban setting for a deeply rural one, and that the contrast would be dramatic for them and their two young children.
“It was a huge move and we had no idea if it was going to work,” Cashdan said. “But we can’t imagine living anywhere else now.”
The couple has a deep commitment to philanthropy that supports land conservation and the environment. So, it’s not surprising that Vermont and the state’s cherished natural landscape, with its narrow river valleys, dense tree canopies, working farms, and rocky peaks, became home. Avid hikers and trail walkers, Cashdan and Stein know first-hand that being in nature can build happiness and health. Their giving through the Vermont Community Foundation has long reflected this.
“I think it’s really important for human communities to find ways to make it possible for all people to get out onto the land, in forests, on farms, in parks,” Cashdan said. She and Stein believe that land conservation and a shared connection to nature will benefit future generations. “I think protecting land will help mitigate climate impact and provide a healthy environment for kids to grow up in,” Cashdan said.
The Norwich, VT residents opened a fund at the Vermont Community Foundation with a bequest from Stein’s great-grandmother. Over the years, they have supported many projects at nonprofits such as the Vermont Land Trust, including those that make working farms economically viable. Vermont Parks Forever, whose park access fund has provided free park passes to thousands of Vermonters including refugees and immigrants, foster families, and people with limited mobility, is another effort they have contributed to through their fund at the Vermont Community Foundation.
The swish of the wind through the trees, the sounds of birds trilling, and the fresh air in parks and open spaces build wellbeing, an appreciation for the environment, and also bring people together, the couple believes. “Parks have superpowers, let’s make more of them,” Cashdan said. “That’s the title of a recent op-ed that spoke to me.”
Support for entrepreneurship with the potential to achieve social good, sometimes referred to as mission investing, also appeals to Cashdan and Stein, whose backgrounds include work with nonprofits such as the Trust for Public Land. They were early supporters of the VCF at Hula fund, which launched in 2022, believing it could seed promising start-ups that make positive changes now and in the future. “Young people understand that the problems we face are gigantic in scale,” Stein said. “Mission investing is an opportunity to take some risk with start-ups and new ideas that may offer solutions.”
Learning about VCF partnerships such as the one with Hula, a Burlington tech co-working campus and business accelerator, is one of the benefits of working with a philanthropic advisor at the Vermont Community Foundation, they added.
“The VCF at Hula embodied everything we care about,” Stein said. “The Community Foundation’s commitment to Vermont really differentiates it from larger, commercial organizations. They provide knowledge, networks and connections in the geography we care about.”
A healthy economy, a healthy landscape, a healthy environment – all these goals drive the couple’s giving, as does their own love of the land nurtured through years of spending time outdoors in Vermont. “It’s who we are,” Cashdan said. “It’s so much in our being.”
Consider opening a donor advised fund to start your own legacy of making a difference in Vermont communities. Together, we can create lasting positive change.
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