One of the community foundation's most important values is inclusiveness, and no fund embraces that more than the Gay Community Endowment Fund.
Founded in 2001, the mission of the Gay Community Endowment Fund is to advance a lived equality for all LGBTQ+ people in Greater Akron. The fund accepts grant applications for programs that benefit the local LGBTQ+ community and Greater Akron as a whole.
Since its establishment, the Gay Community Endowment Fund has invested nearly $840,000 into local causes that change the lives of LGBTQ+ people in our community. Recent grants have created safer environments for LGBTQ+ youth, combated phobias of the LGBTQ+ community, and supported mental health and suicide prevention programs for LGBTQ+ people.
In addition, area students can apply for a scholarship from the GCEF Scholarship Fund, which supports LGBTQ+ and allied students who live or attend school in Summit, Medina, Portage, Stark and Wayne counties.
Read our latest newsletter | Learn about the history of the fund | Circle of Inclusion | Impact Grants | Sugar Plum Tour
Our Recent Grants
By the Numbers
Advisory Board
Advisory board members serve without pay to help the fund impact the lives of people in Greater Akron's LGBTQ+ community.
Chief Financial Officer, Hope & Healing Survivor Resource Center
Katherine I. Raymond, D.D.S., Raymond Dental Group
Judicial Attorney, Eighth District Court of Appeals
Associate Attorney,
Holland & Muirden
Retired, Akron Police Department
Retired, The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company
President, Jones Group Interiors
President, TRIAD Communications
Retired Healthcare Executive
News & Events
News
Akron Mayor Shammas Malik and Rep. Emilia Sykes to speak on LGBTQ+ issues in Greater Akron Tickets are now available for the Gay Community Endowment Fund's 2024 annual [...]
In 2023, the Gay Community Endowment Fund awarded $10,500 in scholarships to seven students who have positively impacted the LGBTQ+ community. In total, the GCEF Scholarship [...]