Peggy Pick Bacon
Peggy was a long-time career counselor at APS who also worked with the Join-A-School Program where she established more than 100 partnerships between businesses and schools. After her death in an automobile accident in 1995, Peggy's family established a permanent endowment fund in her memory to benefit educational needs in Albuquerque public schools. The first grant from this fund supported APS' 'Excellent Adventure Field Trips,' and subsequent grants have funded other important educational programs.
David and Martha Cooper
As strong believers in giving back to the community, David and Martha Cooper established a permanent fund in 1984 with ACF to benefit the cultural arts. This gesture demonstrated their belief of the importance of arts in the community and their support of the community foundation concept of endowment funds that will continue to give in perpetuity.
Crazy Granny
This restricted endowment fund - Crazy Granny's Cookie Jar - was established by an anonymous donor to provide grants to nonprofit organizations providing educational programs and benefiting children and youth in need. The creative name of this fund comes from the donor's grandchildren who call her their "crazy granny."
William Ebel
In 1985, Bill and Gay Ebel established a family endowment fund. After Gay passed away, Bill changed the name of fund to memorialize his wife. Later, after the death of his son, Bill changed the fund name to the Gay E. Ebel and Thomas Ebel Memorial Fund for Children and Youth. Bill and his wife, Suzanne, continue to contribute to this fund while daughter, Lauri Ebel has become involved with other young donors in the Future Fund of Albuquerque Community Foundation.
Dr. W. Sterling Edwards and Ann Dudley Edwards
In 1995, Sterling and Ann Edwards established a donor-advised fund through a gift of real estate, but each of them had his and her own interests. Sterling chose to support educational programs at UNM's School of Medicine. Grants from the fund have supported programs to further communication skills training for doctor-patient relationships, intra- and inter-departmental relationships, and faculty, house staff and medical student relationships. Ann's interests ranged from local hunger issues and child advocacy to international peace organizations. Ann recently passed away and the family will continue to support many of her interests in her memory.
Richard and Linda Eitzen
"My husband is an Albuquerque native and I'm virtually a native. Albuquerque has been very good to us so we decided to look for a way to express our gratitude. We tried a number of charities but none of them felt right. We chose Albuquerque Community Foundation because of its ability to invest our funds in a professional way to create a permanent endowment. Through the staff's research, we've been able to explore various charities to find those we wish to support." Linda Eitzen
Sheilah Garcia
In 1999 Sheilah Purcell-Garcia formalized her commitment to philanthropy by establishing a donor-advised endowment fund, the Garcia Automotive Group Endowment Fund at ACF. Sheilah's grants support numerous diverse nonprofit organizations dedicated to arts and culture, education, historic preservation, and human welfare.
Steve and Laura Hueter Bass
ACF Executive Director Laura Hueter Bass and her husband, Steve, established the Hueter Bass Family Fund in 2001 in celebration of the Foundation's 20th anniversary. Native New Mexicans with a history of diverse volunteer community service, Laura and Steve support the concept of a permanent endowment for the community that will grow in perpetuity. This family fund is designated for the Foundation's general charitable endowment.
John F. and Mae M. Lark
Over the years, Mae and her husband, John, became close friends with Franklin and his wife, Bernice. They all shared an intense interest in children and education. When Mae passed away in 1993, she bequeathed a generous gift to ACF establishing the John F. and Mae M. Lark Fund for Education in honor of Franklin and Bernice Jones.
Anne B. Little
In August of 1998, Anne B. Little, an Albuquerque resident since 1956, passed away at the age of 73. In her estate plans she established the Anne B. Little Revocable Trust naming ACF as the beneficiary. The result of her bequest was the establishment of four separate endowment funds held within ACF to benefit her many interests including education, health, needs of senior citizens, and the botanical garden.
City of Albuquerque Mayors
In 1987, Mayor Ken Schultz designated $50,000 from the Mayor's Ball to establish an endowment fund benefiting at-risk children and youth. Years later, Mayor Martin Chavez added to that endowment with another contribution, also through the Mayor's Ball. Each year grants are made from the Mayors' Fund through the Competitive Grant Program.
Stephen L. Moody
Steve Moody dedicated his life to his family and to helping students with special needs including 20 years as a special education administrator and teacher at APS. The beloved and greatly respected longtime educator died at the age of 43, and grants from his memorial fund continue to support children with special needs.
George Clayton Pearl
George Pearl's love for the state of New Mexico, its people, culture, and architecture, made him an advocate for the preservation of the cultural and natural environment. In addition to a long career with SMPC Architects, Mr. Pearl has been recognized and honored for his designs, historic preservation efforts, and philanthropy. The Pearl Family Fund is one of several component funds in the field of Environmental and Historic Preservation where grants help to preserve the state's historic resources.
A. David and Jane P. Sandoval
Jane Sandoval established a fund in memory of her late husband, David, for music education in public schools. David attended Eugene Field Elementary School where he credited his early introduction to music with keeping him out of trouble as well as giving him a lifelong appreciation of music.
Jane's own passion was paleontology. She volunteered for the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science where she learned that funding for fossil preparation was difficult to secure. The Jane P. Sandoval Fund for Fossil Preparation supports fossil preparation of Triassic and Permian vertebrates and invertebrates.
Jane and Doug Swift
Jane and Doug Swift are well known for their professional, volunteer, and financial commitments to many community organizations in the arts and education fields. Through a donor-advised fund, they are providing annual financial support to the nonprofit organizations and educational institutions they know and love so well.
The FUNd was established in 1988 with the Foundation's largest gift yet by an anonymous donor who "strongly believes that the promotion of the artistic and cultural life of our community has unlimited rewards for future generations." This donor-advised endowment fund has supported the artistic costs of many public art pieces including sculpture by Larry Bell, Tom Waldron and Eddie Dominguez as well as providing grant funding for museum catalogs, public art exhibits, and production expenses for the New Mexico Symphony Orchestra's first CD in 1997.
Nellita E. Walker
Into her 80s, Nellita Walker was always ready for an adventure and never let anything slow her down. She continued to play tennis, travel, and help others, whether it was through volunteering as an usher at Popejoy Hall or supporting organizations helping the disadvantaged. Before her husband Ralph passed away in 1996, the Walkers established a charitable remainder trust with ACF as the beneficiary. Several years later Nellita established two endowment funds, the Nellita E. Walker Fund for KNME-TV and the Nellita E. Walker Endowment Fund providing literacy and adult education services and benefiting programs for the elderly.
Ray and Barbara Zimmer
Ray Zimmer was the first president of the Board of Trustees of ACF. Ray recalls, "we had a card table, two books on organizing a foundation, and a fund of $3,378." A few years later, Ray and his wife Barbara established an endowment fund to provide ongoing support for the administrative operations of the Foundation as well as a planned gift. In recognition of Ray's planned gift to the Foundation (the Foundation's first) and his cultivation of numerous other deferred gifts, the Foundation named its heritage society in his honor.
Back to Profiles Index
QUESTIONS? Call the Foundation Office at (505) 883-6240 or e-mail us at foundation@albuquerquefoundation.org
