#IAMPEARL Fund
The #IAMPEARL Fund is an affinity-sponsored fund at Communities Foundation of Texas established by staff members of CFT’s black affinity group. The fund will make strategic grants to provide meaningful support in the African American community in its identified focus areas of: Education, Food Security, Business Development, and Financial Literacy.
Pearl C. Anderson’s legacy lives on
When Communities Foundation of Texas began in 1953, it was known as the Dallas Community Chest Trust Fund. The first six-figure, major gift to the Dallas Community Chest Trust Fund was in 1955 from Pearl C. Anderson.
Pearl grew up in rural Louisiana during the days of racial segregation and was prohibited from going to school until the age of 12 when a school for black children was finally built a few miles from her home. Every day, she would walk by a plaque that credited a foundation — the Rosenwald Fund — with establishing her school.
Pearl vowed that one day, she would pay back the debt she owed to those who made it possible for her to get an education.
And she brought that dream to the Dallas Community Chest Trust Fund with her gift to create the Pearl C. Anderson Fund at CFT. Pearl gifted a residual interest in a trust consisting of a prime piece of land in downtown Dallas valued at $325,000.
The #IAMPEARL Fund will honor and uplift the legacy of Pearl C. Anderson while providing a visible and public space for CFT staff and external stakeholders to learn about Pearl C. Anderson and her significance to Communities Foundation of Texas. With an increased focus on equity and the welcoming of more diverse voices to the philanthropic community, the fund will establish a space for more inclusivity around the process of giving through a fund, and subsequently, help direct philanthropic dollars in mutually agreed-upon focus area(s).
Support the
#IAMPEARL Fund
CFT is looking for committed, community-minded, forward-thinking individuals and businesses to join us in growing the #IAMPEARL Fund at CFT.
Building this fund together will help ensure there will be dedicated charitable resources to provide meaningful support in the African American community in its identified areas of focus.
Our fundraising goal is $325,000, which is a tribute to Pearl C. Anderson’s generous gift to The Dallas Community Chest Trust Fund in 1955.
Already a CFT fundholder?
Support the #IAMPEARL Fund by making a grant from your fund in honor of Pearl below.
Grants will be made to support organizations which provide community resources related to the following focus areas:
- Education
- Food Security
- Business Development and Financial Literacy
Thank you to our supporters
We gratefully acknowledge the leadership and support of these generous contributors who have joined us in our efforts to uplift the legacy of Pearl C. Anderson and provide meaningful support to the African American community:
