Cape Area Community Foundation

05/31/2026

Fantastic to see the coverage of our grant awards and the information shared about the community foundation and our grant recipients! Thank you FOX23!!

The Cape Area Community Foundation awarded grants Thursday to five regional nonprofits supporting everything from su***de prevention and domestic violence services to youth programs and financial literacy.💙

05/28/2026

The Cape Area Community Foundation has awarded five grants to nonprofit organizations through its 2026 annual grant round, distributing a total of $5,000 to support the work of these organizations. Members of our Board of Directors enjoyed a wonderful breakfast with our grant recipients to present the grant awards and learn more about their impact in communities throughout Cape Girardeau, Bollinger, and northern Scott counties.

During the coming weeks, we share more about each of these organizations and the difference these grants will have this year. Our 2026 grant recipients are Matthew 10:8 Ministries ($2000), the Safe House of Southeast Missouri ($1000), the Community Counseling Center Foundation ($1000), Girl Scouts of the Missouri Heartland ($500), and Junior Achievement of Southeast Missouri ($500).

Pictured in the group photo are (l-r) Judy Cantoni with Community Foundation of the Ozarks; CACF board members Stan Irwin, Laura Hatcher, Katie Earnhart, Trudy Lee, and Tameka Randle; Kim Lewis and Rhonda Mirgaux with Matthew 10:8 Ministries; Becki Arends from Junior Achievement of Southeast Missouri; Kim Dixon and Jessie Green with Safe House of Southeast Missouri; Michelle Ramsey from Community Counseling Center Foundation; and Erin Ragan from Girl Scouts of the Missouri Heartland.

05/18/2026

The Cape Area Community Foundation is thrilled to share that we recently received an Affiliate Action Grant of $5,000 from the Community Foundation of the Ozarks! The Affiliate Action Grants were presented to four of CFO's affiliate foundations that proposed innovative ways to improve their communities.

CACF is using half of the funding to support a comprehensive needs assessment in collaboration with the International City/County Management Association student chapter at Southeast Missouri State University. The other half of this grant will receive a 2-to-1 match from CACF to fund a grant round totaling $7,500, which will address the top needs in our region identified by the study. The needs assessment is expected to be completed by October, and grants from our special grant round will be awarded by the end of 2026 to nonprofit organizations in the communities within Cape Girardeau, Bollinger, and northern Scott counties.

The Affiliate Action Grant was presented April 23 at the Hasselmann Alumni House in Rolla, prior to the fourth-annual Rural Philanthropy Summit presented by the CFO and Philanthropy Missouri on April 24. Pictured below are Judy Cantoni (CFO Director of Affiliate Engagement), Trudy Lee (CACF Board Chair), and Abby Petzoldt (CFO Affiliate Administrative Coordinator).

05/17/2026

SECOP Southeast Council on Philanthropy is a great resource for nonprofit leaders in our region. Join us for the upcoming quarterly program on AI for nonprofits organizations.

05/06/2026

Congratulations to the Safe House of SE Missouri and the SEMO Food Bank. Both of these Cape area organizations are recipients of a $25,000 grant!👏🎉

05/04/2026

Board Member Spotlight: Today we highlight our current board chair, Trudy Lee.

Trudy Lee has made Cape Girardeau her home for the past 25 years, having moved to Missouri in 2001 to accept the position of Director of Planned Giving at Southeast Missouri University Foundation. After 21 years at SEMO, she retired as Vice President for Advancement and Executive Director of the Foundation in 2022 and is enjoying retirement with her husband of 40 years. She is especially proud of her two wonderful sons and their wives as well as two amazing grandchildren.
After nearly thirty years as a charitable gift planning professional, Trudy enjoys staying connected with the nonprofit community through continued involvement with Southeast Council on Philanthropy and by serving on the board of the Cape Area Community Foundation. Having been an advocate for the importance of community foundations throughout her career, Trudy has been honored to serve on CACF's board for the past several years and, in January of 2026, began her term as Chair of CACF's board. She believes that a community foundation creates stronger communities by sharing the importance of philanthropy and supporting the nonprofits who are doing such great work in Southeast Missouri. In addition to her service on the board, she has established a donor-advised fund at CACF because of the unique opportunity it provides to give back to the local community. During her tenure as chair, Trudy looks forward to increasing the visibility and impact of CACF throughout the region.

04/30/2026

Congratulations to the Cape Girardeau Public School Foundation on their grant from CFO! We love when our agency partners receive funding for their awesome programs. 🥳🏆👏

Cape Girardeau schools receive $3,000 grant to bring in guest artist to teach high school English language learners about diverse art projects

04/18/2026

Board Member Spotlight: Join us in saying thank you to our dedicated CACF board members. Over the coming months we will introduce you to them!

Shelly Kaiser is a lifelong resident of Jackson, Missouri, with 37 years of experience in banking. She serves as Assistant Vice President and Banking Center Manager at MRV Banks and is deeply involved in the communities of Jackson and Cape Girardeau. Married with two daughters and two grandchildren, Shelly is passionate about strengthening the region for future generations.

She serves on the Board of Directors of the Cape Area Community Foundation because she believes in the power of local philanthropy to create meaningful, lasting change. Shelly is especially passionate about CACF’s ability to connect generous donors with critical community needs, support nonprofits, and invest in initiatives that improve quality of life across the region. She believes the foundation’s greatest impact lies in strengthening the social, educational, and economic foundation of Southeast Missouri—building a community where individuals and families can thrive not just today, but for generations to come.

03/20/2026

02/10/2026

Thanks for staying in touch with our community foundation here on Facebook! You can also do so on our webpage, where you can apply for our current grant round as well as donate to support our region!

Cape Area Community Foundation A trusted resource for philanthropy serving the communities of Cape Girardeau, Bollinger, and northern Scott counties, including the communities of Cape Girardeau, Jackson, Marble Hill and Scott City.