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The #IAMPEARL fund is an affinity sponsored fund housed at Communities Foundation of Texas. The fund was established by staff members of the black affinity group and will make strategic grants to provide meaningful support in the African American community in its identified areas of focus.

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When Communities Foundation of Texas began in 1953, it was known as the Dallas Community Chest Trust Fund. The first six-figure, major gift to the Dallas Community Chest Trust Fund was in 1955 from Pearl C. Anderson.

Pearl grew up in rural Louisiana during the days of racial segregation and was prohibited from going to school until the age of 12 when a school for black children was finally built a few miles from her home. Every day, she would walk by a plaque that credited a foundation-the Rosenwald Fund-with establishing her school.

Pearl vowed that one day, she would pay back the debt she owed to those who made it possible for her to get an education. And she brought that dream to the Dallas Community Chest Trust Fund with her gift to create the Pearl C. Anderson Fund at CFT. Pearl gifted a residual interest in a trust consisting of a prime piece of land in downtown Dallas valued at $325,000. All she asked was that the money from the eventual sale of the land was used to help "the poor, young people and other struggling people, without regard to their race or religion."

The #IAMPEARL Fund will honor and lift the legacy of Pearl C. Anderson while providing a visible and public space for CFT staff and external stakeholders to learn about Pearl C. Anderson and her significance to Communities Foundation of Texas. With an increased focus on equity and the welcoming of more diverse voices to the philanthropic community, the fund will establish a space for more inclusivity around the process of giving through a fund, and subsequently, help direct philanthropic dollars in mutually agreed-upon focus area(s).

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The Governing Committee will evaluate organizations and determine funding. Grants will be made to support organizations which provide community resources related to the following focus areas:

 
  • Education
  • Food Security
  • Business Development and Financial Literacy  

Thank You To Our Supporters

We gratefully acknowledge the leadership and support of these generous contributors who have joined us in our efforts to uplift the legacy of Pearl C. Anderson and provide meaningful support to the African American community:

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Rendell and Sharon Alexander
The Banks Family Changing The World Fund
Beeks Higdon Family Fund
Aubrey Blake
Joe and Alfreda Borden Norman Fund
Ray and Marsha Bronson
Morgen Brown
Beth and Ed Bull
Wende Burton
Monica Christopher
Christopher Coleman
John Fitzpatrick
Jenna-Wade Fowler
Reggie & Beverly Garner Family
Jeremy E. Gregg
Melissa Hardage
Hawthorne Family Community Fund
Heskes Family Fund
Keith & D'Etta Hughes
Sydney Francina Jordaan Fund
Kolle Family Fund
Landfair Chambers Family Fund
Noelle LeVeaux
Elizabeth Liser
Kenyatta, Kiersten, & Kennedy Lovett
Loving Dads Charitable Fund
Laura Lyman Payne Charitable Fund
Lynne and Allen Mabry Charitable Fund
Kelly Maltese
The Kevin and Alicia McGlinchey Family Fund
The McIver Family Fund
Kimberly McLean
MissChris Gives Fund
Granville C and Gladys H. Morton Fund
Ouida and Marcus Moorehead
Carolyn and Denton Newham
Jennifer Parkinen
Aliysa Patel
Anjulie and JJ Ponce
Teresa Pottorff
Reo Pruiett: The Cleo and Reo Dudley Foundation
Mia and Vijay Ramdon
Ratliff Family Fund
The RLC Charitable Fund
Rosales Arista Schorre Glover Fund
David and Susan Scullin
Julie and Tim Smith Charitable Fund
Spann Family Fund
Margaret Thane Memorial Fund
Kris Thomas
Trinbrook Fund
Stefanie Valenzuela
Amelia A. White
Kenya Wilson
Shareea and Aaron Woods
Skylar Woods-Nunley

Funding

CFT is looking for committed, community-minded, forward-thinking individuals and businesses to join us in growing the #IAMPEARL Fund at CFT! Building this fund together will help ensure there will be dedicated charitable resources to provide meaningful support in the African American community in its identified areas of focus.

Fundraising Goal

Our fundraising goal is $325,000, which is a tribute to Pearl C. Anderson's generous gift to The Dallas Community Chest Trust Fund in 1955. 
donate online now 
Are you a CFT fund holder? Support the #IAMPEARL Fund by making a grant from your fund in honor of Pearl below.
make a fund transfer 

Interested in learning more about Pearl C. Anderson?

The charitable fund Pearl C. Anderson created in 1955 still supports the community today. Read about her charitable impact by clicking the button below.

Read Pearl's story!