THE KNOX FOUNDATION 

Background  For 40 years the Knox Foundation has worked to carry out the vision of Betty Knox, a Hartford benefactress and member of the Court of Common Council, who left the bulk of her estate to improve the city of Hartford through beautification efforts. From its founding, in 1966, to 1977, the Knox Foundation operated as one entity with two major emphases: one focused on horticulture—the “greening of Hartford”—and the second on downtown rejuvenation, or civic renewal.  

In the early 1970s, during a period when it was unprofitable to undertake commercial development in downtown Hartford, the foundation allocated about one-half of its assets to help stimulate development downtown. One such Knox-stimulated civic renewal project was the building of the Carousel in Bushnell Park. 

In 1977 the two distinct emphases gave birth to two separate organizations and the corpus was evenly divided between them, providing $700,000 to each. The greening committee became the Knox Parks Foundation. The downtown rejuvenation effort, first called the Knox Downtown Foundation, is known today as The Knox Foundation. 

Mission Statement  To promote the vitality of the city of Hartford as a unique urban place. The Knox Foundation defines its central mission as ­community building: creating a sense of shared commitment to the City by the diverse groups that constitute its citizenry, and creating a sense of commonality between the City and its neighboring towns. Because of this mission, the values that infuse all of the Foundation’s initiatives are:1) acceptance — indeed celebration — of Hartford’s greatest asset, its rich racial, ethnic and cultural mix, and 2) collaborative approaches to ­planning, problem–solving and ­leadership. 

Charitable Contributions  Three major goals have guided Knox distributions: 

      1. ‑Small Grants to non-profit organizations that, generally, have nowhere else to turn. Grants usually do not exceed $2,000.00. 

      2. ‑Special Grants, up to $10,000.00 to a single grantee in one year. 

      3. ‑Priority Concern grants. On occasion the foundation defines a priority concern in which the Board members become pro-active and to which it offers support. 

Grants  During  2003, 2004 and 2005, the Knox Foundation made 132 small grants, disbursing a total of about $184,000.00. In addition, during this period 2 special grants, totalling $25,000.00, were awarded. 

The foundation accepts applications throughout the year for small grants ranging in amounts up to $2,000.00. Special and Priority Concern grants are awarded on occasion.  

Staff  The Knox Foundation operates with the support of a contracted administrative consultant who also serves as the assistant secretary/treasurer. In addition, the Board contracts for investment advisory and auditing services. 

Board of Trustees  The Board has 15 authorized positions and is a representative group of knowledgeable and dedicated leaders in the Greater Hartford community. Officers for 2006 are Eugene Baten, president, Rita Ortiz, vice president, John Lobon, treasurer, Hedy Ayers, secretary.