Our Mission
The SWCF facilitates innovative and sustaining projects, initiatives, programs, and events that enhance the quality of life in Southwest DC in collaboration with other civic organizations, community and government leaders, and the business community.
About the Southwest Community Foundation
The Southwest Community Foundation was established in 2015 by residents of near Southwest to provide a formal means for improving the quality of life in the quadrant through philanthropic giving.
The founders acted in response to the accelerating pace of real estate development and demographic change that had been sweeping through the quadrant for the past decade. They believed that the community needed a formal, impartial, nonpartisan vehicle for directing philanthropic monies to those areas where they were most needed and best deployed.
Organized for charitable, educational, and scientific purposes under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, the foundation receives funds and donations intended for the benefit of residents of near Southwest, defined as the area bounded by 14th Street SW, Independence Avenue, South Capitol Street, and the Potomac and Anacostia rivers.
The Foundation seeks and encourages innovative and sustainable initiatives, projects, programs and events that enhance the community.
It has awarded its first grant to the Southwest Business Improvement District (SWBID) for revitalizing the Southwest Duck Pond, a treasured local amenity, and visioning a connected series of parks stretching from the Duck Pond to the Southwest Public Library. The grant funds were provided by Mill Creek developers as part of a community benefits agreement negotiated with Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 6D in relation to construction of apartment buildings on 6th Street SW.
In pursuing its goals, the foundation works closely with individuals and local individuals, businesses, and organizations, including the SWBID, Southwest Neighborhood Assembly (SWNA), and ANC 6D. It also seeks to coordinate its efforts with those of local and federal government entities that provide services and other opportunities to the residents of Southwest.