Our History

The Community Foundation for Southern Arizona (CFSA) was founded in 1980 as the Greater Tucson Area Foundation, created by local leaders to unite philanthropic individuals dedicated to strengthening our community. Over the years, CFSA has evolved, connecting hundreds of donors—individuals, families, and businesses—to the causes they care about most. Through strategic grantmaking and impactful partnerships, CFSA continues to drive positive change, improving the quality of life in Southern Arizona today and for generations to come.

1980

Greater Tucson Area Foundation established by Buddy Amos, James Burns, Jim Click Jr., Edward Moore, and Granger Weil

CFSA Founders
1980-1982

Leonard White becomes the first Executive Director.

1980

James Burns, founder of Greater Area Tucson Foundation, serves as Board Chair.

1981

Edna Amos establishes one of the first endowed funds in memory of her late husband, George H. Amos, Sr.

1983-1986

George “Buddy” Amos, Jr. serves as Board Chair.

Buddy Amos Chair
1983

Donna Grant is hired as the Foundation’s first full-time Executive Director.

1983

Greater Tucson Area Foundation was renamed Tucson Community Foundation.

1984

Established First Family Funds honoring individuals and families who lived in greater Tucson prior to WW II and contributed to the social, cultural, and charitable growth of the community.

1985-1986

Received National Endowment for the Arts Challenge Grant to establish Endowment for the Arts Fund.

Endowment for the arts fund a fund of the community foundation for southern Arizona
1986

Assets grow to $3.1 million.

1986-1989

Sidney B. Brinkerhoff serves as Board Chair.

Sid Brinkerhoff
1987

The Arizona Arts Award and the Igor Gorin Memorial Award are established.

Photo of Igor Gorin singing to a group of people in a field
1988

Awarded the first grant to the Tucson AIDS Project, beginning a long involvement in the fight against the disease.

1989

Received challenge grant from Ford Foundation and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation to raise $1.5 million in endowed funds to be matched with $1 million.

1989-1990

Received a challenge grant from the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation to establish a program funding neighborhood development.  Led to a partnership with United Way, city and county governments, and the Pima Prevention Partnership to found PRO Neighborhoods.

ProNeighborhoods Logo
1990

Assets grow to $7.3 million.

1990-1994

 Gordon W. Waterfall serves as board chair.

1991

The HIV/AIDS Consortium was established with a grant from the National Community AIDS Partnership.

1991

Melody S. Robidoux established a supporting organization, the Melody S. Robidoux Foundation, placing the foundation in the top 50 community foundations nationwide.

1992

Harriet Silverman and Melody Robidoux established the Southern Arizona Women’s Fund. This Fund empowers women and girls to improve their lives and communities through five primary forces for change – leadership development, charitable giving, community building, research, and grantmaking.

Melody Robidoux photo
1994

Kerstin and Spencer Block established the Buffalo Exchange Arts Award. 

Spencer and Kerstin Block
1994-1996

Bettina O’Neil-Lyons serves as Board Chair.

1995

Assets grow to $25.1 million

1996-1998

Dr. Anna Jolivet serves as Board Chair.

Dr. Anna Jolivet smiling
1997

The name changed to Community Foundation for Southern Arizona to reflect regional grantmaking.

1998-2000

Michael Hard serves as Board Chair.

1999

Southern Arizona Women’s Fund was renamed the Women’s Foundation of Southern Arizona.

1999

CFSA was awarded a $100,000 challenge grant to establish the LGBTQ+ Alliance Fund.  

2000

Assets grow to $52.2 million. CFSA is ranked in the top 20% of community foundations nationwide.

2000

In partnership with local leaders, CFSA established the regional affiliate Santa Cruz Community Foundation.

2000-2002

Mary Ann Dobras serves as Board Chair.

2001-2010

Steve Alley joined CFSA as President and CEO.

2002

Center for Planned Giving (CPG) was established as an impartial resource for professional advisors, donors, and nonprofits exploring philanthropy.

2002-2004

Phil Amos serves as Board Chair.

2003

CFSA became a founding member of the Border Philanthropy Partnership designed to strengthen philanthropy on both sides of the US/Mexico border stretching from San Deigo/Tijuana to Brownsville/Matamoros.

2004-2007

Robert Friesen serves as Board Chair.

2005

Assets grow to $75.4 million.

2006

Social Venture Partners Tucson is established.

2006

Launched a $1-million Literacy for Life Coalition to promote a culture of literacy in Pima County.

2007

Surpassed $100 million in assets.

2007-2009

Carmen Marriott serves as Board Chair.

2008

Stone Canyon Community Foundation donor advised fund established.

Stone Canyon Community Foundation
2008

The Economic Relief and Stability Fund granted 100% of the $442,000 funds contributed to local nonprofits through the CFSA Community Investment grants. We were able to provide relief to the most vulnerable in our community – through the nonprofits that serve them.

2009

Launched Technical Assistance Program in partnership with the Alliance of Arizona Nonprofits and Cox Communications and awarded a collaborative grant to help low-income minority artists become economically successful.

2009-2011

Paul Lindsey serves as Board Chair.

2010

Clint Mabie joins CFSA as President and CEO.

Clint Mabie- Headshot - B&W
2010

Planning Grants of up to $5,000 each awarded to Ajo Food Partnership, Neighborhood Stabilization in the City of South Tucson, Partnership for Women and Girls, and the Empowered Leaders Directing Elder Resources to develop their implementation plans and expand their collaborations.

2011

Responded to the events of January 8, 2011 by establishing 5 funds that received over $1,100,000 from 5,000 individuals from 48 states and 10 countries.

2011

Literacy for Life Coalition merged with four local literacy programs to create Literacy Connects.

2011-2013

Nancy Davis serves as Board Chair.

2012

CFSA convenes the animal welfare community and establishes the Pima Alliance for Animal Welfare (PAAW) to improve animal welfare through collective action.  At that time, almost 13,000 animals a year were being euthanized annually in our municipal shelter, and our community needed to act.

2013-2015

 R. Michael Sullivan serves as Board Chair.

2013

African American Legacy Fund is established with leadership from former board member and civic leader Dr. Anna Jolivet. The fund works to increase philanthropy to and from the African American community in Tucson.

2014

Launched the Making Action Possible (MAP) Dashboard in partnership with the University of Arizona and Southern Arizona Leadership Council. The MAP Dashboard was created to measurably improve Southern Arizona through data-driven collective civic action and education.

2014

Launched the Community Interactive, a series of engaging and informative live events addressing issues Southern Arizonans face – such as poverty, the border, education and the arts. Produced in partnership with Arizona Public Media, each event featured an accomplished moderator and a panel of experts, offering community members an opportunity to participate in a solution-driven conversation about these pressing issues.

Community Interactive Logo
2015-2017

Fred Chaffee serves as Board Chair.

April 2017

Launched CORE Grants Program to increase the availability of general operating support for high-impact nonprofits in southern Arizona. CORE Grants provide nonprofits with the flexible working capital necessary to maximize their impact and improve the quality of life in Southern Arizona.

CORE_Grantees 2017
2017-2021

Jan Lesher serves as Board Chair.

November 2017

Began construction at 5049 E. Broadway to build the Community Foundation Campus as a central hub for nonprofits to convene, collaborate, and grow.

December 2018

Community Foundation Campus opened to the public.

2019-2020

Claudia Jasso serves as Board Chair.

Claudia Jasso Headshot
July 2019

Launched Catchafire Program to support nonprofit capacity building throughout Southern Arizona.  CFSA granted year-long Catchafire memberships to 100 local nonprofit organizations in 2019, resulting in over $1.8 million in completed projects, representing over 9,000 volunteer hours and 440 individual projects.

Catchafire Grantee 2019
2019

Launched CORE Donor Collaborator Program and awarded $500,000 in general operating funds to the community through the second round of CORE Grants – a 67% increase over the first round of CORE Grants. Contributing to over$200 million in funds granted to the community.

CORE Grants 2019
January 2020

Established the Center for Healthy Nonprofits to strengthen the southern Arizona nonprofit community by offering free and reduced-cost capacity-building workshops and training for nonprofits. Built upon CFSA’s in-depth knowledge of the nonprofit community, the Center helps nonprofit professionals and volunteers improve their ability to manage, govern, and grow local charitable organizations.

Center for Healthy Nonprofits - Color
March 2020

Celebrated 40 years of serving the Southern Arizona community with event at the University of Arizona featuring guest speaker Maria Hinojosa.

March 2020

Established two COVID-19 Response Funds and facilitated over $3.5 million in COVID relief funding to Southern Arizona nonprofits.

CFSA COVID-19 Community Response Funds Sponsors
January 2021

CFSA partners with The University of Arizona’s Eller Executive Education to provide nonprofit leadership and management training to local nonprofit professionals. The partnership was established as part of CFSA’s COVID-19 Response Strategy to help local nonprofits recover from the impact of the pandemic. The training, consulting opportunities, and Nonprofit Leadership & Management Certificate Program is provided free of charge to local nonprofits

2021

Jenny Flynn joins CFSA as President and CEO.

CFSA CEO Jenny Flynn
2022-2024

Styne Hill serves as Board Chair.

Board member Styne hill
November 2022

Established the Nonprofit Solar Project to offer local nonprofits the opportunity to meet a significant portion of their energy needs through solar power. By switching to solar, the selected nonprofits will reduce their carbon footprint and energy costs, freeing up resources for programming or other infrastructure needs.

Community Foundation for Southern Arizona's Nonprofit Solar Project
May 2023

CFSA opened a Little Free Library called Dog Eared Books.

Dog-Eared Books Little Free Library
June 2023

The Community Foundation, in partnership with Tucson Tome Gnome and Tucson Agenda, starts a Solutions-Focused Community Book Club to bring together interested community members from all walks of life to bond over a shared desire to make our community better for all – and be inspired by a shared reading experience!

June 2023

Together We Bloom. CFSA launched a new strategic plan – BLOOM – to sharpen our focus and refine our mission: To build a thriving Southern Arizona through philanthropy. Three new awards were created to recognize our blossoming community: the Bold Aspirations Award, Impactful Philanthropy Award, and Vital Nonprofit Award.

Together we bloom
October 2023

The Community Foundation for Southern Arizona is proud to expand its efforts to provide unrestricted operating grants to local nonprofits with the launch of the Comunidad (Community) Grants Program. This grants program was created to provide unrestricted funding to Southern Arizona nonprofits with annual operating budgets under $100,000.

November 2023

Established the Local News Initiative for Southern Arizona to help strengthen local journalism in our community and fill critical gaps in local news and information.

February 2024

Santa Cruz County Community Foundation (SCCF), a geographic affiliate of the Community Foundation for Southern Arizona (CFSA), was selected as a host organization for a new Economic Recovery Corps program (ERC) launching this month at 65 host locations across 44 states and territories.

May 2024

Press Forward Southern Arizona was established as one of the newest additions to Press Forward Locals, a network of chapters working to expand resources for local news nationwide.

Press Forward Logo
2024-Present

Taunya Villicana serves as Board Chair.

Board trustee, Taunya Villicana.