[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 141 (Friday, August 6, 2021)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E873]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       COMMUNITY FIRST FOUNDATION

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. ED PERLMUTTER

                              of colorado

                    in the house of representatives

                         Friday, August 6, 2021

  Mr. PERLMUTTER. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize Community 
First Foundation as the 2020 Behind the Scenes award winner by the 
Arvada Chamber of Commerce. For many decades, Community First 
Foundation has done exceptional work in supporting Colorado nonprofits, 
but they showed particular leadership and commitment to our community 
throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
  Community First Foundation was originally founded in 1975 as the 
Lutheran Medical Center Foundation. In these beginning years, they 
focused on fundraising efforts for the Lutheran Medical Center, a 
nonprofit hospital supporting the western suburbs of Denver. Today, 
they help donors with philanthropic planning, and support nonprofits 
with grants and resources in order to build resilient and connected 
communities across Jefferson County. The organization has seen 
incredible success in its initiatives, particularly in its founding and 
continued sponsorship of the annual Colorado Gives Day. Created in 
2010, Colorado Gives Day is now the second-largest 24 hour day of 
giving in the nation, with more than $419 million donated to Colorado 
nonprofits between 2010 and 2020. In recognition of this initiative, 
Community First Foundation was named the Outstanding Foundation of the 
Year by Ability Connection Colorado in 2014.
  More recently, Community First Foundation served our community in 
exceptional ways through their efforts to strengthen and stabilize 
nonprofit organizations across Jefferson County during the COVID-19 
pandemic. They established the Jefferson County Hope Fund to ensure the 
nonprofit community and government agencies serving Jefferson County 
could continue their services and response to the public health crisis. 
As of April 2020, they provided $970,500 to 92 different nonprofits. 
Since then, they have disbursed three additional rounds of funding to 
aid in Jefferson County's recovery.
  I applaud Community First Foundation for their incredible work and 
commitment to our community and congratulate them on being recognized 
as the Behind the Scenes Award winner by the Arvada Chamber of 
Commerce.

                          ____________________