What we do

Our community faces what may seem like intractable challenges.

AALFI was created to address a specific subset of those challenges.
We have chosen to do so via the vehicle of philanthropy. To ensure that we stay true to our mission, we consciously avoid trying to be all things to all people. Thus, we focus on three responsibilities:

Secure Support from A Diverse Set of Donors.
AALFI actively identifies potential donors, helps them understand what we do (and why we do it), understand what issues are important to them, and look for commonalities between them. Our beneficiaries are primarily African American. We welcome donors from all walks of life who share our passion and commitment.

Strengthen Our Community Through Grantmaking.
AALFI makes grants to individuals and organizations who align with our areas of interest. We strive not to be very rigid in defining our beneficiaries. To that end, we may make grants to organizations and/or individuals who may not qualify for grants from other institutions. Importantly, we do not run our own programs. Rather, we have chosen to support the work of organizations and individuals who have a sound track

Advocate for and Educate Our Community.
In addition to securing and re-investing financial resources, we strive to provide the community with information that will aid them in their daily living. For example, as the COVID-19 crisis began to grow,

Our Initiatives

GIVING CIRCLE

The African American Legacy Fund Giving Circle seeks to increase awareness and engagement by inviting individuals to donate their time and pool their resources to address socioeconomic priorities affecting African Americans in our community. Members will collaborate to invest pooled resources annually to achieve
greater collective impact.

ENDOWMENT FUND

The African American Legacy Fund is an endowed donor-advised fund of The Indianapolis Foundation, an affiliate of Central Indiana Community Foundation.

This permanent fund is a philanthropic vehicle that allows any donor to make a charitable contribution, receive a tax benefit and engage with other donors. It then empowers a committee of donors to design a grant-making process and make charitable distributions from the fund to help address socioeconomic disparities experienced by African Americans in Indianapolis. Members will participate in fundraising efforts to grow and administer endowment assets.

EVERY DOLLAR HAS DIGNITY

We acknowledge that financial constraints may have prevented some individuals from participating in the early adopter phase of the inaugural launch of AALFI. We firmly believe that financial limitations should not serve as a barrier to participation in a community initiative. The Every Dollar Has Dignity initiative seeks to remove barriers while creating a pathway for full engagement with AALFI.

YOUR FUND. YOUR LEGACY.