FOREVER SAINT PAUL
GENERATIONS OF GENEROSITY
For nearly 75 years, The Saint Paul Foundation has partnered with thousands of donors to build a vibrant
community that offers opportunity for all. With the support of generous donors, we work to address hardships,
solve problems and improve the quality of life for everyone who calls the Saint Paul region home.
We are a resource and champion for the community
We use assets entrusted to us to make a difference, and our strategy of responsive grantmaking and leading
community initiatives has generated positive results for decades. For example, during the energy crisis of the
1980s, we created an initiative and worked with the city to launch District Energy St. Paul. Today, the clean,
cost-effective energy system remains a national model. In 2008, we co-founded the Central Corridor Funders
Collaborative to join with other foundations to ensure that the light rail between Saint Paul and Minneapolis is a
success for everyone along the line.
In our responsive grantmaking, we focus on six core areas that we believe are crucial for a vibrant community:
From investing in public libraries to
supporting arts groups and public spaces,
we are working to keep Saint Paul vibrant.
By supporting child and adult literacy, addressing
achievement disparities and building a skilled
workforce, we focus on maximizing potential.
Excellent
Quality
of Life
Housing
and Mobility
Choices
Investing in neighborhoods
with affordable housing and
transportation options are two
ways that we are working to
strengthen Saint Paul.
We connect people to the
building blocks of success by
supporting projects that range
from helping seniors remain
independent to strengthening
at-risk families.
Education
and
Training
Vibrant
Communities
Strong
Human Service
and Family
Support
Economic
Opportunity
and Security
Quality
Affordable
Health
Care
We work to increase access
to jobs and support job
training and business
development in the East
Metro area.
Ensuring that more children get
dental checkups and providing
access to medical care and
mental health care are ways
that we support the health of
our community.
In 2013, The Saint Paul Foundation made 5,707 grants to the community totaling $53.4 million.
How We Work With Donors
Maybe you care about environmental issues or are devoted to
the local arts community. Whether you want to support a specific
purpose or geographic area, we can help you establish a fund to
support your charitable intent – during your lifetime and after. We
work with donors to set up a variety of planned giving vehicles to help
them carry out their charitable vision.
Today, we help more than 1,000 individuals, families and businesses
make the most of their charitable giving by helping them to support
and build more vibrant communities.
Ralph R. Kriesel established the first Chevrolet
dealership in Saint Paul and built a financial
empire of auto dealerships, banks and credit
companies. The fund he established in 1971 with
$258,000 has since made 732 grants totaling
$20 million. Today, the fund is worth $22 million
and supports causes across Saint Paul, from
celebrating Hmong culture to preserving the
Como Conservatory.
George and Judy Murakami set up a donor
advised fund in 2004 with education in
mind. Each year, their six grandchildren
study nonprofits and recommend grants.
Judy finds the online resources very helpful.
“The information and tools available …
enable our family to think, learn and act
on our desire to be more involved with
philanthropy.”
Susie and Steve Fritze’s first taste of organized
giving was on a church mission to Kentucky
when they were teenagers. Since then, their
giving philosophy has been simple: “What does
your heart say?” Steve, a retired Ecolab CFO,
and Susie, a retired nurse, look for causes that
transform families — including their own. They
encourage their children, now adults, to join them
in giving. For Susie, that commitment is part of
something bigger. “Finding a cause that is dear
to their hearts ... is a parameter of success.”
A History of Caring
On the heels of the Great Depression,
a small group of civic leaders
examining Saint Paul’s welfare needs
decided to create an organization that
could solve community problems and
improve the quality of life in Saint Paul
for generations to come. In 1940, that
idea came to life when The Saint Paul
Foundation was established.
In 1944, Annie Paper took a leap of
faith by bequeathing $5,000 to the
fledgling foundation that had yet to
see its first
donor. It was
money well
spent, because
The Saint Paul
Foundation has
since grown
into the largest
community
foundation in
the state.
A Russian émigré and mother of six
whose husband ran steel distributor
Paper Calmenson, Annie left a
legacy that still shapes her adopted
hometown.
Her fund has made $65,000 in
grants to support causes she cared
about, such as children’s rights and
immigrant assistance. Today, it has a
balance of nearly $60,000.
Thanks to donors like Annie Paper,
The Saint Paul Foundation now
manages more than $730 million in
assets to support changing community
needs.
Since 1940, the Saint Paul Foundation has made more than $820 million in grants to the community.*
Over nearly 75 years, thousands of generous people committed to the Saint Paul area have made charitable
gifts to The Saint Paul Foundation. Today, that generosity has made the Foundation the state’s largest
community foundation. Guided by the legacy of its earliest donors, the Foundation helps donors achieve their
charitable giving goals and create a positive and a long-lasting effect in the community they love.
To learn more about the work we do in the community, our planned giving opportunities and our generations of
donors, please contact our gift planning team or visit our website: saintpaulfoundation.org.
*As of 12.31.2013.
101 Fifth Street East, Suite 2400 | Saint Paul, MN 55101-1800 | 651.224.5463 | 800.875.6167
Rev. 3/14