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— Bill Leffler, Treasurer, Delaware Valley Legacy Fund
The Delaware Valley Legacy Fund (DVLF) actively secures our community’s future by promoting planned giving and building a permanent fund dedicated to meeting the needs, securing civil rights, and celebrating the lives of LGBTQ+ people through grants and scholarships. For many of us who do not have children, and even those who do, DVLF provides a way to give back to the community in support of future LGBTQ+ generations. As a legacy fund, DVLF receives bequests from donors upon their passing. DVLF is a nonprofit, permanent endowment.
Since DVLF’s founding in 1993, the organization’s mission has been to support the emerging needs of the LGBTQ+ community. Over the 28 years since DVLF was formed, the needs of the community have changed, so DVLF focuses on a broad spectrum of organizations. Some of our grant recipients include The Attic Youth Center, Philly Black Pride, The Elder Initiative, The William Way LGBTQ Community Center, The Mazzoni Center, Bebashi – Transition of Hope, and many others. These organizations provide tremendous support to their respective population of focus within the community.
DVLF educates donors and combines individual donations, so all gifts benefit multiple organizations. Benefactor organizations are critical and impact thousands of lives. We are often the first to provide grants to emerging nonprofits and a core funder for anchor organizations that advocate for LGBTQ+ rights, ensure community health, promote intersectionality, and foster arts and culture.
DVLF holds two major fundraisers per year: HEROES and TOY. Both are important for the purpose of raising funds and to bring the community together. These events create opportunities to focus awareness, support, engage, educate, and recognize the work of the nonprofit organizations DVLF supports.
HEROES was launched to honor individuals whose work and leadership advance the rights of the community. We seek to identify youth, adults, non-profits, straight-allies & businesses who have bold ideas, act with selfless intention, are admired for their integrity, and are regarded as courageous in advancing the equality of the LGBTQ+ community in the Delaware Valley and beyond. DVLF honors these HEROES annually in celebration of their character and in encouragement of others to act heroically.
Our annual TOY event is a celebration of community during the holiday season. This event has become a premier LGBTQ+ holiday gathering in the region, where community members find the holiday spirit and celebrate the progress we’ve made over the last year.
From the height of HIV/AIDS to LGBTQ+ rights, to marriage equality and elder care, the needs of the community in our region have changed over the years. Since our founding, we have given over $1 million to community serving organizations
Every year we receive more proposals than we can fund. Our vision is to fully fund every qualified proposal received. This makes it even more important to drive the mission to fund the emerging needs today and moving into the future. DVLF is always searching for new board members who are dedicated to creating a better world for all members of the LGBTQ+ community. Should you have interest in joining the board, please contact us at: info@dvlf.org.