For the Connelly Foundation, 2020 started off like any other year. The focus was on implementing the strategic plan adopted in June 2019 and a long list of goals and initiatives for supporting the Foundation’s core areas of Education, Human Services, and Culture and Civic Life. And there was also an office renovation project to manage. Then, in just a few days in March, everything changed. As the COVID-19 pandemic raged through our community, the Foundation’s Board of Trustees and staff were forced to rethink strategy, process, and support – from remote work protocols to the grant process to payment procedures. Within two weeks on March 26, 2020, the Board of Trustees earmarked $2 million to COVID-19 relief efforts and on August 31, 2020, increased the Foundation’s budget by an additional $3 million to continue the response. Throughout the year, the Foundation took a proactive approach to grantmaking, reaching out to groups in the region, along with other philanthropic organizations, to see how it could help. This effort by the Connelly staff – working at home – required collaboration, flexibility, passion, and a commitment to the mission and legacy of the Foundation. Nobody will ever forget the 2020 pandemic. Not those whose lives were upended. Not those on the front lines of helping others. And certainly not those who offered financial and moral support. Overall, the Connelly Foundation increased its grants budget in 2020 by 24% to $15.4 million from $12.4 million, and nearly $7 million was devoted to COVID-19 relief, response, and recovery. The Connelly Foundation was hardly alone. This was a year that philanthropy in the Philadelphia region responded in significant and unprecedented ways to help those suffering from the crisis. For the Connelly Foundation, the roots of its response run deep. John and Josephine Connelly established the Foundation in 1955 to support the Catholic Church they loved and the educational, social, and cultural needs of the region they loved. In 2020, the Foundation surpassed $450 million in giving – an ongoing sign of its longstanding commitment to help those in need. 2 The Connelly Foundation’s COVID-19 grantmaking response was guided by a series of overarching principles. Among them: • Be flexible and lead with empathy and care • Commit early and provide sustained support throughout the year • Increase the scale and scope of the Foundation’s 2020 Grantmaking Commitment • Support the nonprofit sector in the entire region both proactively and responsively • Collaborate with and learn from philanthropic peers to leverage impact and provide a true civic response • Support organizations serving the most vulnerable and respond in a way that reaches personal impact • Focus on long-standing partners, while being open to new engagements • Assess the long-term implications for the nonprofit sector and local organizations • Adhere to the Legacy of John and Josephine Connelly’s Philanthropy and Values 3 The historical, all-encompassing nature of the pandemic demanded that philanthropic organizations do more than ever to maintain the educational, charitable, and cultural entities that are knitted into the tapestry of our region. From that realization came the Connelly Foundation’s initial decision to shift funding to COVID-19 and take a more proactive approach to awarding grants. Later in the year, the Foundation launched a COVID Response and Recovery Project, an intense $2 million, three-month effort that was proactive and invitation only. Overall, the Foundation awarded more than $6.7 million to 303 organizations. Emergency relief grants were created to supply organizations either working on the frontlines or experiencing significant disruption in service with grants of up to $50,000 for operational support. Throughout the year, 87 organizations were provided with Emergency Relief General Operating Support totaling $1,488,000. A Sample of Recipients Included: 4 The Connelly Foundation invests heavily in education, especially Catholic education, and COVID- 19 spurred targeted support. • $383,000 to the Archdiocese of Philadelphia Office of Catholic Education to increase scholarship aid by $1,000 each to 383 Josephine C. Connelly Award winners attending Archdiocesan high schools • $350,000 to the Archdiocese of Philadelphia for Chromebooks and Technology • $400,000 to fund full semester scholarships for 14 Villanova students in the Connelly-Delouvrier International Scholars Program despite cancellation of study abroad program • $696,000 to 75 Archdiocese of Philadelphia and IMS schools – direct school level support for COVID-19 Response and Recovery • $350,000 to 14 Private Catholic Schools • $250,000 to Philadelphia School Partnership for Chromebooks and citywide internet access • $225,000 to 23 schools for emergency support to assist schools and families in greatest need heading into Summer Break and the Christmas holiday season • $50,000 to Faith in the Future for general operating support • $50,000 to Independence Mission Schools for general operating support • $44,000 to 22 Catholic elementary schools in Philadelphia for virtual field trip or educational programming schools • $25,000 to Children’s Scholarship Fund for general operating support to help families with Catholic education tuition The Foundation invited recent grantees to apply for targeted support to adapt their operations and programming to better serve their communities, or to address unique, unmet needs due to COVID. 5 48 organizations received grants totaling $277,500. Trustee discretionary grant funding was increased this year to allow for greater trustee participation in reaching organizations they know best. The Foundation increased its traditional responsive grantmaking budget, allowing staff to reach additional organizations in need with timely support. 19 organizations received grants totaling $593,000. 6 The Foundation’s support covered the entire Greater Philadelphia Region. 7 Grant Amount Grantee $1,000 1807 & Friends Chamber Music Ensemble $20,000 Academy of Natural Sciences $25,000 Academy of Notre Dame de Namur $21,000 Advocates for Homeless and Those in Need, Inc. $15,000 After School Activities Partnerships (ASAP) $10,000 Allens Lane Art Center $10,000 Alliance for Catholic Education at Saint Joseph’s University $50,000 American Bible Society $12,500 American Foundation for Suicide Prevention $2,500 American Red Cross Eastern Pennsylvania Region $10,000 American Swedish Historical Museum $25,000 Ancillae-Assumpta Academy $5,000 Andalusia Foundation $10,000 Andrew L. Hicks, Jr. Foundation $15,000 Anna's Place $5,000 Arch Street Preschool $1,000 Archbishop Ryan High School $383,000 Archdiocese of Philadelphia - Josephine C. Connelly Achievement Awards $20,000 Archdiocese of Philadelphia-Nutritional Development Services $25,000 Arden Theatre Company $5,000 Artistas y Musicos Latino Americanos $25,000 ArtReach, Inc. $15,000 Augustinian Defenders of the Rights of the Poor $20,000 Back On My Feet $5,000 Better Community Housing of Trenton, Inc. $1,000 Bishop Shanahan High School $6,000 Blessed Trinity Regional Catholic School $15,000 Blessed Virgin Mary School $50,000 Boys & Girls Clubs of Philadelphia $25,000 Boys and Girls Club of Chester $20,000 Brandywine Conservancy & Museum of Art $1,000 Brandywine Health Foundation $5,000 Bread for the City $400,000 Broad Street Ministry $21,000 Cardinal John Foley Regional Catholic School $1,000 Cardinal O'Hara High School $25,000 Caring for Friends $20,000 Carpenters’ Hall $50,000 Cathedral Kitchen $10,000 Catholic Partnership Schools $5,000 Catholic Partnership Schools - Camden $150,000 Catholic Social Services of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia $7,000 Center for Aquatic Sciences at Adventure Aquarium $25,000 Center for Grieving Children $15,000 Center in the Park, Inc. $25,000 Children's Scholarship Fund Philadelphia $5,000 Christian Caring Center $15,000 Clarke Schools for Hearing and Speech - Pennsylvania $15,000 Cliveden of the National Trust 8 $10,000 Colonial Pennsylvania Plantation $15,000 Commodore John Barry Arts & Cultural Center $12,500 Community Center at Visitation $20,000 Community Design Collaborative of Philadelphia $15,000 Compass $25,000 CORA Services, Inc. $25,000 Covenant House Pennsylvania $50,000 Cradles to Crayons $65,000 Cranaleith Spiritual Center $35,000 Cristo Rey Philadelphia High School $10,000 Dawn's Place $3,000 DC Central Kitchen $35,000 DePaul Catholic School $25,000 Devon Preparatory School $10,000 Dornsife School of Public Health at Drexel University $30,000 Drexel Neumann Academy $50,000 Drexel University $3,000 Eastern State Penitentiary $8,000 Ebenezer Maxwell Mansion, Inc. $12,000 ElderNet of Lower Merion-Narberth $10,000 Episcopal Community Services $20,000 ESF Dream Camp Foundation $25,000 Esperanza $45,000 Face to Face $50,000 Faith in the Future Foundation $24,000 Father Judge High School $15,000 Feast of Justice Ministries $2,000 Fort Mifflin $5,000 Franciscan Sisters of the Renewal $53,000 Franklin Institute Science Museum $55,000 Freedoms Foundation at Valley Forge $5,000 Gemma Services $10,000 Good Works, Inc. $30,000 Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance $10,000 Greensgrow Philadelphia Project $25,000 Habitat For Humanity Philadelphia, Inc. $4,000 Historic Bartram's Garden $26,000 Historical Society of Pennsylvania $25,000 Holy Cross Regional School $4,000 Holy Cross School $1,000 Holy Family Regional Catholic School $1,000 Holy Family School $25,000 Holy Ghost Preparatory School $10,000 Holy Redeemer School $12,500 Holy Rosary