The Cream City Foundation has joined the
Greater Milwaukee Foundation as a supporting organization, the GMF announced Tuesday.
The Cream City Foundation, an organization focused on the needs of members of the LGBTQ+ community, will keep an independent board, according to a GMF news release, but will now have access to GMF’s “investment expertise, administrative support and regional reach.”
The partnership seeks to “enhance future growth, sustainability and impact in the LGBTQ+ community,” according to the news release.
Cream City Foundation board chair
Charlie Nash said in the news release that this partnership “will allow our volunteer leaders to refocus our energy on relationships with donors, our convening priorities and our grantmaking activities.”
“Building on the momentum of Pride Month, we see this as a great opportunity for longtime supporters and new allies to join us in advancing the human rights and responding to the human needs of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer people in southeast Wisconsin,” Nash said in the news release.
The Cream City Foundation, established in 1982, worked to fight the AIDS crisis and advocated for same-sex marriage. The organization has helped fund Pridefest, Milwaukee LGBT Community Center and Vivent Health, according to the news release.
The Cream City Foundation funds nonprofits and student scholarships to address “the economic, health, safety and equity needs that prevent the region’s LGBTQ+ communities from achieving full inclusion and acceptance,” according to the news release.
The Cream City Foundation has granted $1.6 million to local nonprofits so far. Since 2017, the foundation has also awarded $220,000 in scholarships to support “current and future LGBTQ+ leaders,” according to the news release.
“The legacy and impact of Cream City Foundation is etched in Milwaukee’s history, and we are honored that their leadership has chosen to partner with us as they enter a new era of serving the community,” said
Ellen Gilligan, Greater Milwaukee Foundation president and CEO, in the news release. “Our values are aligned around an inclusive, thriving Milwaukee for all, and both of our organizations have much to gain as we bring together our connections, ideas and resources.”
