Donor Impact Stories

Turning Loss into Legacy

Dan Smith Turns Loss into Legacy

Dan and Joellyn Smith were always strong proponents of helping those in need. They established the Smith Family Fund at Communities Foundation of Texas as a way to pay their prosperity forward. After Joellyn passed away from breast cancer, Dan approached us for guidance on how to honor her memory.

Investing Deeply in the Community

Brad Miller, business-advised fund holder and CFT for Business Member Company

Brad Miller, president of Encore Multifamily, is one of many business people fostering a community of service and building a philanthropic legacy from the ground up through CFT for Business, a Communities Foundation of Texas program that makes it easy for small- and mid-sized companies to do good.

Getting Creative to Fund the Arts

Craig Hall Transforms Real Estate into Real Impact

Craig Hall, founder of Hall Group and fund holder at Communities Foundation of Texas, structured a complex donation of two premium restaurant spaces in the Dallas Arts District to his fund at CFT.

Your Guide to Simplified Complex Giving

Did you know Communities Foundation of Texas can accept a wide range of gifts, even real estate, art and antiques?

Did you know Communities Foundation of Texas can accept a wide range of gifts, even real estate, art and antiques?

Supporting the Heart of a Champion

Gini Florer uses CFT's GiveWisely class to guide her charitable giving

Following a stroke in utero that left her son with his brain severely damaged, Gini Florer has become a champion for children with special needs.

Intentional Giving

Darryl Rose & Melisa Ambers feel the power of giving back

“KNOWING WE WANTED TO GIVE BACK in our community on a more significant level, my initial thought was to start my own foundation,” says Melisa Ambers. “But after we discovered CFT, we realized they have the resources and knowledge to help us make intentional gifts in this community. Why reinvent the wheel?”

Chip Off the Old Block

Meredith Woodworth administers grants from her grandfather's fund

Before there were Morton’s Potato Chips, there was Granville C. Morton, honing his potato chip recipe in the kitchen of his Dallas sandwich shop.

Strikeouts Save Lives

Clayton Kershaw Uses CFT Fund to Raise Money for African Children

Dallas native and Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw fused his natural baseball ability with helping children in need last season when he began pledging $100 for every strikeout to support children in Africa.

Casey McManemin keeps his grandfather's legacy alive

Casey & Megan McManemin bring Mack's Barber Shop to The Bridge

Casey’s grandfather was an unassuming man. He opened a barbershop in 1920 when he moved to Dallas. Today, Megan and Casey are continuing his grandfather’s legacy by funding a barbershop at The Bridge, a homeless shelter in downtown Dallas through their fund at CFT.

Choreographing a Campaign

Dallas Black Dance Theatre works to secure its financial future

Dallas Black Dance Theatre, the premier professional dance company in Dallas, has taken steps to secure its financial future. In 2008, Dallas Black Dance Theatre successfully completed a $10.8 million capital campaign to secure a permanent home and established a fund with Communities Foundation of Texas to make continued giving easy for donors.

Neiman Marcus Employees Support Disaster Relief

Neimans uses their business-advised fund to engage employees and respond to natural disasters

Disasters are life’s great equalizers. They remind us that being human is being vulnerable. When a disaster happens to others, we know it just as easily could have happened to us, and our inborn urge to help swells. Neiman Marcus wanted to give its employees a way to participate in disaster response and recovery efforts through the company’s annual charitable giving campaign.

Joining together to help Japan

On the morning of March 11, 2011, a catastrophic 9.0 earthquake spawned a 30-foot-high tsunami that destroyed the northeastern coast of Japan. Anna McFarland, witnessing news coverage of the disaster, knew she had to help. As the executive director of the Japan-America Society of Dallas/Fort Worth, a friendship organization connecting the two countries, Anna quickly turned to Communities Foundation of Texas for assistance.

Focusing on Kids' Futures

Trinity River Mission uses scholarship funds to focus kids' on their futures

The children who complete the Believe and Achieve program offered through Trinity River Mission (TRM) receive more than the enhanced self-esteem that comes from academic success.  “The high school seniors are pretty much guaranteed a $4,000 scholarship to college,” said Dolores Sosa Green, executive director, referring to the $500-per-semester scholarship that is funded and administered through CFT.

The Art of Financial Management

Looking to raise a large amount of money to help restore the original Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts campus and build a new state-of-the-art facility adjacent to the 1922 building—without spending resources on staff and infrastructure to manage those funds—the Arts Magnet Advisory Board partnered with Communities Foundation of Texas (CFT) when they launched a capital campaign.

The Art of Giving

Linda and Bob Buford donate art to CFT to use proceeds for charitable good

When Linda and Bob Buford purchased a contemporary painting in New York 27 years ago, little did they realize it would produce so many rewards. The large painting by abstract expressionist painter Joan Mitchell, with its active brush strokes and vibrant yellows and blues, captured the spirit of the bright, sunny landscapes of the South of France. Along with another work by the same artist, the painting hung in the Bufords’ guest bedroom where Bob often read and admired the two favorites from their art collection.