In eight decades of operation, the Leelanau Township Community Foundation has pumped more than $6 million total into various local causes.

The foundation's grants have supported important initiatives in education, parks and recreation, the environment, arts and culture, childcare and more. There are hundreds of programs, organizations and people who have benefitted from LTCF over the years, and that impact has spread far beyond Leelanau Township (which includes Northport and Omena).

Despite all of this time and all of this impact – and a board that’s consistently filled with familiar faces – there is still a nagging feeling that the LTCF remains at least partially under the radar.

“We’re the third oldest (community) foundation in the state of Michigan, but unfortunately there are some people in our township who still don’t know that we exist,” foundation board vice president Barbara McCann tells The Ticker.

That’s at least part of the reason why folks at the foundation are excited about an upcoming community gathering to celebrate 80 years of the LTCF in action. This event will be held this Friday (July 25) at the Northport Marina pavilion from 4 to 7 p.m.

It’s an opportunity for area residents to meet the LTCF team and learn more about the foundation’s history. It will be immediately followed by Northport’s popular Music in the Park series (this edition features Igor and the Red Elvises).

LTCF operates in the same manner as most other community foundations, which pool charitable donations and then make grants to a variety of nonprofits, governments, academic institutions and more, usually within a specific geographic area. Organizations can apply for these grants, which are issued in a series of “grant cycles.” The LTCF has six cycles per year and gave out $90,000 in grants in 2024.

In addition, the foundation has long provided higher education scholarships for local students, including those beyond Leelanau Township. It gave out almost $30,000 of such scholarships last year.

Finally, the foundation also supports a variety of community events, including Leelanau UnCaged, Cars in the Park, Northport Dog Parade, Northport Winter Carnival and more.

This all started in 1945 when businessman Francis Haserot made an initial gift to launch the foundation in memory of his dear friend, fellow businessman Gilman Marston Dame. Sources vary on the amount – a newspaper clipping from the time says $5,000; the foundation’s annual report and other documents have long said $35,000, which is more than a half million in 2025 dollars.

Regardless, Haserot and other founding fathers would likely be pleasantly surprised at what the LTCF has grown into over the decades since.

“I've thought about that at different times, and I have to believe that they would be somewhat astounded and very pleased and proud that the foundation has sustained itself all these years and continues to be a jewel here in Leelanau Township,” longtime former Executive Director Joan Moore tells The Ticker.

Echoing McCann’s sentiments, current Executive Director Beth Stowe says the foundation is still looking to spread the word, particularly to organizations that might benefit from its grants.

“We want to get our name out there a little bit more so people know what we have available to them and how we can help them,” Moore tells The Ticker. “We can’t grant money if people don’t apply.”

Stowe, McCann and Moore are all tremendously grateful for the LTCF’s donors, volunteers and board members who have served the foundation in the past eight decades.

“We’ve had a history of faithful donors over the years…and our board members have been just stellar,” Moore says.