LGBTQ+ Report '26, final 6'23'26

BR WARD PRIDE

Committed to LGBTQ+ Support

Championing Local Philanthropy

The Community Foundation of Broward partners with philanthropists and nonprofits to transform lives and uplift our community. Our leadership identifies pressing local needs and forges collaborations to provide resources that make a lasting difference. We build permanent, endowed support for making life better in Broward – today and for generations to come.

Throughout our more than 40-year history, the Community Foundation has stood alongside Broward’s LGBTQ+ community –providing leadership, partnership and sustained philanthropic support to tackle big challenges and shape a brighter future.

Our LGBTQ+ Support – Past, Present and Future

The Community Foundation is committed to building a stronger, more connected Broward where everyone can succeed.

Through leadership, philanthropy and collaboration, we work to remove barriers, expand opportunities, overcome injustice and strengthen our diverse community, so all residents can thrive. We believe a thriving community is one where everyone has the opportunity to live with dignity, safety and purpose.

That’s why support for the LGBTQ+ community is woven into the Community Foundation’s DNA.

In 1986, the two-year-old Community Foundation became the first nongovernment funder in Broward to lead the charge for education and understanding of the HIV/AIDS epidemic. In the decades since then, we have awarded more than $11 million in grants to support the LGBTQ+ community on a wide range

of issues, including healthcare, advocacy, education, community outreach, the arts, youth programs, housing, legal aid and more.

This publication reflects both how far we have come and the work that lies ahead to champion support for the LGBTQ+ community. It reaffirms our commitment to invest in solutions, elevate voices and strengthen pathways to opportunity.

SNAPSHOT OF SUPPORT

$1 million over six years to expand LGBTQ+ inclusion and acceptance – through healthcare programs, school programs and more – as part of the “Issues that Matter” initiative

$11 million in LGBTQ+ support since our founding in 1984

$3.7 million to champion HIV/AIDS education and prevention

$403,000 in grants from the endowed LGBTQ Community Impact Fund, created in 1997 to ensure permanent, sustainable support

$1 million since 2012 to support The Our Fund Foundation’s work to uplift Broward’s LGBTQ+ community, including more than $600,000 since 2022 for a social justice and equity grantmaking collaborative

$4 million from the John C. Graves Charitable Fund to bolster the missions of 38 nonprofits, such as SunServe, Sunshine Cathedral and The Pride Center at Equality Park

Working Together Through the Decades

The rich legacy of Broward’s LGBTQ+ community is one of courage, resilience, advocacy and transformation. It’s a legacy fueled by partnership with individuals, nonprofits, local institutions and a host of supporters working together to expand opportunity and build a more inclusive future.

The Community Foundation is guided by community voices, with local leaders

shaping our grantmaking and our understanding of what it takes to build a more inclusive community.

Through careful investment, we safeguard and grow endowments that ensure Community Foundation grants will always be there to uplift and empower the LGBTQ+ community.

1984-1994 | Early Advocacy

As the HIV/AIDS crisis unfolded in the 1980s, Broward County’s LGBTQ+ community faced fear, stigma and profound loss. Limited public understanding and scarce resources left many individuals and families in Broward navigating the HIV/AIDS crisis with little support. Local leadership was needed to raise awareness and rally support.

In 1986, the leaders of the

two-year-old Community Foundation of Broward showed they weren’t afraid to take a position on an important issue that affected lives in our community and beyond. The Community Foundation decided to champion HIV/AIDS education and prevention, becoming the first nongovernment funder to lead efforts to boost education and understanding in Broward. We attracted new funders to the

table and landed matching grants through the National AIDS Fund. Ultimately, we granted more than $3.7 million to address HIV/AIDS in Broward.

In addition to bringing much needed philanthropic support to tackle a critical issue, the Community Foundation established itself as a local leader, able to rally support and take on big challenges.

1994-2004 | Community-Led Philanthropy

By the 1990s, philanthropy began to emerge as a greater tool for change.

To champion those efforts, the Community Foundation in 1997 partnered with local LGBTQ+ leaders to create an endowed charitable fund to ensure a permanent, sustainable source of support for initiatives and services benefiting Broward’s LGBTQ+ residents. Spearheaded by leaders

such as Alan Schubert, Gil Corwin, David Ratcliffe, future Fort Lauderdale Mayor Dean Trantalis and others, the fund at the Community Foundation drew support from more than 60 donors and became the first of its kind for community foundations in Florida.

The Community Foundation promoted the fund and helped create a permanent, sustainable source of support

for LGBTQ+ community priorities. Since its launch nearly three decades ago, the LGBTQ Community Impact Fund has supported 76 programs and services with more than $400,000 in grants supporting health care equity, social-emotional support for students, sensitivity training for first responders, outreach programs to promote understanding and equality, artistic exhibits and much more.

2004-2014 | Building Trust and Strengthening Local Nonprofits

As the number of nonprofits serving Broward’s LGBTQ+ community grew, the Community Foundation increased its focus on strengthening these important local organizations for longterm impact. In addition to providing support for more community services, we delivered resources to bolster nonprofits’ infrastructure, leadership networks and sustainable resources.

For example, in 2000 the Community Foundation used support from The Kresge Foundation to launch a matching grant program that encouraged local nonprofits to raise money toward building endowments of their own. Endowments provide permanent, sustainable support that nonprofits can always count on to fuel their missions. The Pride Center at Equality Park Fund at the Community Foundation is one of the endowments launched by this matching grant collaboration. The fund ensures ongoing support for this vital community hub in Wilton Manors that

provides health and wellness programs, workshops, support groups, event space and other services that uplift the LGBTQ+ community.

Also, growing trust in the Community Foundation led more LGBTQ+ individuals to establish charitable funds at the Foundation, and to include future gifts in their estate plans. That increased commitment enabled us to broaden the reach and sustainability of Community Foundation support for nonprofits serving the LGBTQ+ community. Key

to that increased investment was LGBTQ+ advocate John Graves, who partnered with the Community Foundation to provide an infusion of support for a host of nonprofits serving the LGBTQ+ community. Nearly $4 million in grants from The John C. Graves Charitable Fund at the Community Foundation provided vital support to 38 organizations including SunServe, Stonewall National Museum and Archives, Sunshine Cathedral, American Civil Liberties Union of Florida and The Pride Center at Equality Park.

2014-Present | Expanding Impact and Championing Inclusion

We reaffirmed our longstanding commitment to Broward’s vibrant LGBTQ+ community by including “Broward Pride” as one of the Community Foundation’s “Issues that Matter” – 10 issues we identified as essential to Broward’s future, which became the focus of the Community Foundation’s leadership and grantmaking.

In 2017, the Community Foundation hosted a series of listening sessions to learn more

about local barriers to equity and inclusion for LGBTQ+ residents. Our listening sessions revealed details of persistent discrimination and stigma affecting well-being, health and economic security. Participants emphasized the need for broader inclusion beyond traditional LGBTQ+ spaces, as well as greater support for youth, elders, transgender residents and others facing intersecting barriers in housing, healthcare, employment and safety.

We responded by refining our “Broward Pride” grants to target more than $1.1 million in support for 20 measures over six years that bolstered equality, justice and inclusion for LGBTQ+ residents throughout Broward. That included support for:

• Equality Florida – “Safe and Healthy Schools” program that helps make schools more inclusive. Also, an outreach program with Broward Health to help more LGBTQ+ residents access healthcare. continued on next page

Tracey Labgold shares how the nonprofit Keshet will use its 2026 grant from the Community Foundation and The Our Fund Foundation collaboration to promote inclusion and equality for young LGBTQ+ Jews.

2014-Present

• SunServe – Cultural competency and sensitivity training for front-line municipal employees.

• Keystone Halls – Transitional housing and mental health support to help LGBTQ+ individuals overcome homelessness.

• Museum of Discovery and Science and the NSU Art Museum – Increased outreach, new programming and facilities improvements to make these local institutions more inclusive for the LGBTQ+ community.

In recent years, we have expanded our support for social justice and equity for the LGBTQ+ community through a dynamic collaboration with The Our Fund Foundation.

Since its inception in 2022, this grantmaking collaborative has awarded more than $1.21 million to advancing equity and inclusion in our community. During 2026, 13 nonprofits are receiving grants ranging from $15,000 to $35,000 each to support the LGBTQ+

community through advocacy, education, community outreach, mentoring, the arts, anti-bullying youth programs and more.

In addition to grantmaking support, we provide training and other resources to help sustain and strengthen the work of nonprofits serving the LGBTQ+ community. What started in the 1990s with the Community Foundation’s Nonprofit Resource Center

has reached new heights today with the Broward Center for Nonprofit Excellence. Nonprofit professionals and volunteers from The Pride Center at Equality Park, SunServe, BLINC and the Stonewall National Museum Archives & Library are among the local nonprofit leaders benefiting from workshops, one-on-one coaching, convenings and a host of online tools provided by the Community Foundation.

Partnership Guides Our Path Forward

Ongoing support for “Broward Pride” remains a major focus of the Community Foundation’s grantmaking and leadership. We strive for Broward to be a vibrant place where all can thrive, feel connected and have the opportunity to reach their full potential.

Broward has made great strides, but we aren’t there yet. Many LGBTQ+ residents – especially young people, seniors and transgender residents – still face obstacles

to safety, healthcare, housing, economic opportunity and full inclusion in everyday life. The path forward calls for continued partnership, more listening, advocacy and strategic investment. It requires a shared commitment to building a Broward where every person can live openly, safely and with dignity.

Local philanthropy is essential to shaping a brighter future and the Community Foundation is committed to supporting

the LGBTQ+ community to help Broward achieve its true potential. We invest in community-led solutions, support trusted nonprofits and advance efforts that foster equity and inclusion.

Thanks to the power of endowment and our ongoing partnerships with dedicated philanthropists and nonprofits, the Community Foundation’s support for the LGBTQ+ community will never end.