Judy Shepard, founder of the Matthew Shepard Foundation, is coming to Akron in April to speak at the annual meeting of the Gay Community Endowment Fund of Akron Community Foundation.
Shepard and her husband, Dennis, created the Matthew Shepard Foundation in memory of their son Matthew, who was murdered in October 1998 in an anti-gay hate crime in Wyoming. At the event, Shepard will share Matthew’s story and talk about the work the foundation is doing to continue his legacy.
Donors, supporters and friends are invited to attend the meeting, which will be held Sunday, April 26, at the Hilton Garden Inn, located at 1307 E. Market St. in Akron. The annual meeting celebrates the Gay Community Endowment Fund’s impact in the community and recognizes its most recent grantees. Since its inception, the fund has invested nearly $360,000 into the community to improve the lives of LGBT people and Greater Akron as a whole.
The meeting will begin at 2 p.m. with hors d’oeuvres and coffee, followed by the program and keynote address at 3 p.m. After the program, guests are invited to a showing of “Matt Shepard is a Friend of Mine,” a documentary film depicting Matthew Shepard’s life and tragic death. The film is a winner of four Best Documentary awards and was given the Audience Choice Award for Best Film at the 2014 Cleveland International Film Festival.
Tickets to the annual meeting are $50 each and may be purchased at www.akroncf.org/GCEFAnnualMeeting or by calling 330-376-8522. $30 of each ticket is tax deductible.
For more information, contact Sheila Martin, event chair, at [email protected].
About the Gay Community Endowment Fund
Founded in 2001, the Gay Community Endowment Fund is a permanent philanthropic endowment of Akron Community Foundation. It facilitates and perpetuates philanthropy by supporting programs and services that support or positively impact the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community, as well as the entire Greater Akron community. Since its inception, the fund has grown to more than $960,000 while reinvesting nearly $360,000 into the community. Contributions of any amount are welcome and support future grantmaking. Checks may be sent to the Gay Community Endowment Fund of Akron Community Foundation, 345 W. Cedar St., Akron, OH 44307-2407. For more information, or to contribute, call 330-376-8522 or visit www.gaycommunityfund.org.
About Akron Community Foundation
Celebrating 59 years of building community philanthropy, Akron Community Foundation embraces and enhances the work of charitable people who make a permanent commitment to the good of the community. In 1955, a $1 million bequest from the estate of Edwin Shaw established the community foundation. Today, it is a philanthropic endowment of more than $185 million with a growing family of more than 480 funds established by charitable people and organizations from all walks of life. The community foundation and its funds welcome gifts of all kinds, including cash, bequests, stock, real estate, life insurance and retirement assets, just to name a few. To date, the community foundation’s funds have awarded nearly $121 million in grants to qualified nonprofit organizations. For more information about Akron Community Foundation or to learn more about creating your own charitable fund, call 330-376-8522 or visit www.akroncf.org.
