2020ANNUAL REPORT CONTENTS 06 LETTER FROM THE CHAIR 08 YEAR IN REVIEW: CIVIC PROJECTS 29 GOVERNANCE 30 ADVISORY COMMITTEES 32 SUPPORTING ORGANIZATIONS 34 AFFILIATED COMMUNITY FOUNDATIONS 35 FUND COMMITTEES 36 CHARITABLE FUNDS 50 2020 GRANTS 68 2020 MEMBERS 74 MEMORIALS AND HONORARIA KEY FACTS INITIATED: 1964 ASSETS: $722 MILLION (unaudited) GRANTS SINCE INCEPTION: $570 MILLION SERVICE AREA POPULATION: 2 MILLION Baton Rouge Area Foundation Community Foundation of Southwest Louisiana (Affiliate) Northshore Community Foundation (Affiliate) WEST ST. WASHINGTON FELICIANA EAST HELENA FELICIANA BEAUREGARD ALLEN POINT COUPÉE EAST BATON WEST TANGIPAHOA BATON ROUGE The Baton Rouge Area Foundation provides ROUGE LIVINGSTON ST. TAMMANY JEFFERSON DAVIS three services to improve South Louisiana: CALCASIEU IBERVILLE ASCENSION CAMERON The Foundation manages charitable accounts for people and organizations. Our most 1 popular accounts for individuals are Donor Advised Funds, which are like investment accounts for doing good works. People open and put money in DAFs; we manage the funds and make grants to nonprofits on behalf of donors. The Foundation has granted $570 million since inception in 1964. Our donors want the greatest returns for the ASSET GROWTH OVER 5 YEARS community, so the Foundation’s Strategic Consulting 2 Services division helps nonprofits with strategy and fundraising to produce better outcomes. 2016 $616 MILLION 2017 $650 MILLION 4 The Foundation leads civic projects with annual 5 support from our members. Current projects 2018 $608 MILLION 3 include coordinating autism services, implementing 2019 $719 MILLION the University/City Park Lakes master plan that was paid for by our donors, justice reform to reduce 2020 $722 MILLION (unaudited) the prison population, better public schools and rebuilding city neighborhoods with partners. BATON ROUGE AREA FOUNDATION 2020 ANNUAL REPORT BATON ROUGE AREA FOUNDATION 2020 ANNUAL REPORT plished: Three O’Clock had cooked ery. That’s on top of more than $6 and distributed 5.5 million meals million raised to respond to the from the start of the pandemic to pandemic. the end of 2020. Our donors, In this annual reflection on the Here at the Foundation, I’m proud Foundation’s work the year before, members, to say we played a small part, grant- you can read more about how we Letter ing $100,000 to help Emily grow the partnered with diverse organiza- and staff FROM THE Three O’Clock Project from a small tions and individuals to respond will continue local effort to an operation span- not only to the storms’ immediate ning 15 parishes. With the Huey effects, but also in efforts to rebuild to work and Angelina Wilson Foundation, South Louisiana in smarter, more chair we also provided a $2 million guar- sustainable ways, with research tirelessly to antee for a bridge loan until Three and science always guiding O’Clock could draw down federal decisions. make South efore the pandemic struck, Emily funds to pay for the meals. Louisiana a Chatelain labored largely in Disasters kept us busier than Emily and her staff deserve the ever with raising money and better place obscurity. She was operating her credit, along with so many others making grants to nonprofits on the Three O’Clock Project, a nonprofit who quietly showed what hero- front lines. However, not even a to live—not ism means during the most difficult pandemic and two historic hurri- Bthat gave meals after school to the children year in modern history—especially canes paused our work on civic only when who would go hungry without help. in Louisiana where, along with the projects. The Foundation and its pandemic, our people suffered one collaborators secured funding for times get But what could a modest after- ees and built a big, makeshift punishing hurricane after another the first phase of the University/ tough, but school program like hers do when kitchen on a stage at Celtic Media in a record-breaking season. City Park Lakes restoration. The the virus had shut down all the Centre. She and her staff worked effort to safely reduce the East especially schools? More than ever. Instead of nearly around-the-clock just to But we’re not strangers to disas- Baton Rouge Parish jail population waiting for schools to reopen, she keep up. ter here, and we rose as we always not only proceeded but acceler- when they do. William E. Balhoff boldly increased her operation. do. Our people not only took care ated. And, thanks to our partners, Emily Chatelain’s story is not of their own, but they sacrificed to our community now has a crisis Understanding childhood hunger only about compassion and care, take care of their neighbors too. It’s stabilization center, which opened in our community better than but also hard-nosed resourceful- just what we do. in February 2021 and began caring most, she knew that malnutri- ness in a time of crisis. She and her Nuns in habits hauled jugs of water for people with mental illness tion would balloon quickly with- team cooked, packed and deliv- instead of sending them to jail. out school cafeterias feeding kids ered meals with a logistical effi- to thirsty folks in Southwestern healthy meals; to keep up, Emily’s ciency rivaling a military mission. Louisiana, where thousands were To all those who suffered losses Three O’Clock project would have Before long, they had set up tempo- suddenly left homeless. Neighbors to COVID-19 or the storms, we to expand as rapidly as the ranks of rary drive-thrus at parks and cranked up chainsaws, cleared offer you more than our sincere hungry children. other public places, as close as trees, and made a way forward for condolences. You also have our 6 7 they could to children who needed others to begin rebuilding. Local pledge: Our donors, members, and Quickly, the Three O’Clock Project meals while they struggled through folks dug deep into their own pock- staff will continue to work tire- began dishing out breakfasts as schooling at home. ets to donate to the Foundation, lessly to make South Louisiana well as lunches. Word circulated, combining their gifts with those a better place to live—not only demand grew, and Emily adapted When all the counting was done, we’d received from people and when times get tough, but espe- fast. She muscled up her staff with even Emily was astonished by businesses everywhere, ultimately cially when they do. fresh new Three O’Clock employ- what she and her team had accom- raising $9 million for storm recov- BATON ROUGE AREA FOUNDATION 2020 ANNUAL REPORT The Pandemic THE NEWS CAME FROM far away; the danger seemed remote. A virus had jumped from animal to human in China. The Chinese government was containing it. But, already, travelers were spreading the coronavirus around the world before we understood what was happening. We all know what came next. By late February 2020, the coronavirus had infiltrated our national awareness and quickly dominated our most anxious conversations. At the Baton Rouge Area Foundation, our staff cracked open the disaster operations manual—a reliable resource whose pages we’ve worn thin following so many hurricanes and floods. The fundamentals of disaster response haven’t changed, even for a global pandemic. Step one, secure resources. We reached out to a network of 2020 businesses, foundations and our own fund donors to raise more YEAR IN REVIEW than $2.8 million for the response. Step two, regular meetings with nonprofits and government leaders informed us where the needs were greatest. Step three, we spent the generous contributions we’d received to achieve the best results. We worked hand-in-hand with many energetic and innovative nonprofit and business partners to reduce the suffering inflicted by the greatest health crisis in more than a century. 8 9 BATON ROUGE AREA FOUNDATION 2020 ANNUAL REPORT YEAR IN REVIEW BATON ROUGE HEALTH DISTRICT 157,911 number of masks, gowns, and other personal protective equipment secured and distributed during the pandemic EARLY IN THE PANDEMIC, when most people still didn’t know what “PPE” meant, supplies of personal protective equipment were dangerously low for the need we were facing. The Baton Rouge Health District responded immediately. Created by the Foundation and overseen by health care leaders, the BRHD 10 established a distribution center for masks, gowns and other 11 PPE. The Health District worked with private industry, building a logistics platform and sending PPEs where the need was most urgent. The BRHD also provided $30,000 in seed funding to establish a coronavirus testing hub at LSU School of Veterinary Medicine that included a robot for sterilizing equipment and increasing efficiency. BATON ROUGE AREA FOUNDATION 2020 ANNUAL REPORT YEAR IN REVIEW GOV. JOHN BEL EDWARDS COVID-19 RESPONSE FUND $2.05 million amount donated to provide science-based pandemic response AMID WIDESPREAD CONFUSION, political pressure and misinformation, Governor John Bel Edwards insisted on making pandemic policy decisions based on sound scientific research. The Foundation stepped forward to help. Working with the Irene W. & C.B. Pennington Foundation, Huey and Angelina Wilson Foundation, Arnold Ventures and Dentaquest, 12 BRAF provided over $2 million for finding answers to crucial 13 questions during the pandemic. The governor approved funding to understand why people of color were dying in greater numbers from COVID-19, as well as funding research by Ochsner and Pennington Biomedical Research Center to determine the true levels of disease in the community—studies that allowed for more accurate targeting of prevention efforts. BATON ROUGE AREA FOUNDATION 2020 ANNUAL REPORT YEAR IN REVIEW THREE O-CLOCK PROJECT 5.5 million number of meals served by Three O’Clock project to children during the pandemic FOR MANY CHILDREN in our makeshift staff inside a Celtic Media community, the end of the school day Centre warehouse, she quickly built meant going hungry at home.