The Community Foundation of NCW awarded $42,000 to local nonprofits through the Cashmere Legacy Fund Grant Program in 2025, continuing a community-led approach to local giving.

Launched in 2024, the Cashmere Legacy Fund has distributed $68,500 in grants in just two years, supporting nonprofit organizations serving the Cashmere community and surrounding areas.

At the heart of the Legacy Fund model is a simple belief: the people who live in a community are best positioned to guide how charitable dollars are invested. That belief is carried out through Local Advisory Boards (LABs)—groups of community members who work alongside CFNCW board representatives to review grant applications, attend site visits, and determine funding priorities for their region.

Now in its second year, the program is growing stronger as communities refine their approach to doing even more good together.

“[It has been an] enchanting experience working with this LAB, a group of folks truly dedicated to helping our community, and community-based organizations that deliver that loving care,” said Paul Wojciechowski, a Cashmere LAB member. “As an added bonus I learned how much good and caring work takes place in [our] seemingly quiet community that otherwise I wouldn’t see.”

The fund was launched with support from CFNCW’s Founders Circle, made up of community members who invested $5,000 or more to establish the fund. Ongoing support is welcome at any level through the fund’s grantable or endowed options.

To celebrate this year’s grant recipients, CFNCW and the Cashmere Local Advisory Board hosted a grantee celebration on December 8^th at the Mission Creek Community Club, bringing together nonprofit partners, LAB members, and Community Foundation representatives to recognize the good brought by local philanthropy.

CFNCW thanks the community members, donors, and Local Advisory Board members whose support makes this work possible, and congratulates the nonprofit organizations awarded grants in 2025 for their vital service to Cashmere.

Wojciechowski continued, “My wish is that there was more money to allocate, because there is such a need. The help that the endowed organizations provide is on the grassroots level and targets the most needy and vulnerable. If you can, please give generously or volunteer. Our work and our donations make this community blossom for all of us.”

*In addition to local grantmaking, CFNCW uses a Regional Pool to support nonprofit organizations whose services extend beyond a single community. When more than a third of a nonprofit’s service population lives outside its local Legacy Fund boundary, the organization may be eligible for funding through this pool. This year, Alatheia Riding Center received a $10,000 Regional Pool award in recognition of its regional impact.