Carter G Woodson Annual Report

Message from Woodson Board Me ber Emeritus

Charles Brown

S ince the Carter G. Woodson Foundation extended me the high honor of Board Member Emeritus, I continue to proudly carry the banner of both optimism and hope for the commendatory work that it is doing for under-represented youth and families in the Madison area community. The foundation’s programming in the areas of cultural enrichment, social action, Reading Is Fundamental (RIF) book distributions, and scholarship has provided an impactful service to those most in need and thus continues to improve the quality

CARTER G. WOODSON

of life for this population. Since the inception of the foundation some twenty-seven years ago, the sun has not always shone, and there were plenty days of rain. I’m painfully reminded of the 2007- 2008 recession when contributions from donors fell at the same time the community needed to grow. As a result, the foundation reorganized it efforts and financial resources and still met critical community needs. Then years later came the deadly, raging global Pandemic that caused the Board and members to become creative and still meet those needs. The foundation went from in- person mentoring of African American middle school boys to Zoom mentoring and is meeting the challenges head on. After sponsoring the in-person Thanksgiving Food Drive for twenty-eight years, the foundation quickly shifted to a drive-by format. Unequivocally, the Woodson Foundation will remain dynamic in its services to the community for generations to come, one child, one family at a time. To the Executive Board of Directors, members, donors, and volunteers, we thank you and ask for your continued support. Upward, outward, and onward.

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