Page 192 - South Mississippi Living - December, 2022

FINAL SAY
CHRISTEN
DUHÉ
President & Executive Director Gulf Coast Community Foundation
I heard a great quote about the significance of legacy a few weeks ago that immediately made me think of the Gulf Coast Community Foundation (GCCF): “We are warming ourselves by a fire someone else built.” I can’t think of truer words regarding GCCF and the legacy that has been built over the last 33 years.
Our community has been warmed by a fire that started out
as a spark in 1989, when a committee of the Mississippi Gulf Coast Chamber of Commerce decided to establish an education foundation to support public schools. Those visionaries switched gears when they learned that a community foundation could have a much larger impact on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. From our first significant grant of $5,000.00 to the Biloxi School System in 1991, GCCF has now given more than $94 Million to hundreds of charitable causes such as education, child welfare, public health (including COVID-19 response), natural disaster recovery (including Hurricanes Katrina, Zeta, and Ida), arts and culture, and animal welfare.
With all the good GCCF has done throughout the years, there are still many people who are not familiar with who we are and what we do. It’s not easy to answer the question, “What does the Gulf Coast Community Foundation do?” To try and put
it simply, we create opportunities to improve the quality of life of south Mississippians, ultimately resulting in a better Gulf Coast. How do we do that? GCCF administers over 120 funds designed to achieve the myriad of charitable objectives of our donors. These funds have been established through outright cash donations, as well as through transfers of stock, gifts of
real estate, retirement plan assets, personal property, and life insurance. Some individuals work with advisors to plan bequests that last beyond our lifetime.
By choosing to donate through GCCF, you’re not only supporting the cause you’re passionate about, but you’re also making it possible for other causes and organizations to receive support. The question shouldn’t be, “What does the Gulf Coast Community Foundation do?” it should be, “What doesn’t the Foundation do?”
I feel honored to pick up the torch and continue the legacy of people like Robert Hicks, first GCCF Board Chair and retiree of Mississippi Power, and Rodger Wilder, partner at Balch & Bingham and the person responsible for incorporating GCCF in 1989. The spark that started in 1989 has grown to a blazing fire and, together, it is our responsibility to make it grow and continue to burn for generations to come.
192 | December 2022
www.smliving.net | SOUTH MISSISSIPPI Living