Chautauqua Region Community Foundation
ActivePhilanthropy & Voluntarism
About Chautauqua Region Community Foundation
The Chautauqua Region Community Foundation is a deeply local funder concentrating on Jamestown and broader Chautauqua County, prioritizing arts & culture anchors, downtown/community economic development, and core human services. It provides both capital investments for civic projects and steady operating/program support for nonprofit service providers, often making repeat grants to the same organizations. The foundation also shows a distinct interest in local environmental stewardship (Chautauqua Lake/watershed) and supports faith-based congregations as community service hubs.
Focus Areas
Cultural anchors and tourism institutions in Chautauqua County (e.g., National Comedy Center, Chautauqua Institution, Reg Lenna)Downtown and neighborhood revitalization in Jamestown (Jamestown Center City Development Corp; JRC/Renaissance)Local human services and safety-net organizations providing direct services (Salvation Army, YWCA, United Way, YMCA, Filling the Gap)Chautauqua Lake and watershed protection and regional environmental managementLocal congregations and faith-based community programs serving social needs
Who They Fund
youth (4-H participants and general youth programs)
About Chautauqua Region Community Foundation
A repeated pattern in the recent grants is the foundation’s support for Jamestown’s civic and cultural institutions, including a $283,514 operating grant to National Comedy Center Inc. in 2023 and a $264,804 capital campaign grant to Jmst Cntr City Development Corp in 2024. Those awards point to a funder that backs visible community anchors as well as the organizations shaping downtown investment and public life. Chautauqua Region Community Foundation Inc. gives at a local scale, with most grants staying in New York and many landing in Jamestown. Its recent grantmaking also shows steady support for arts venues, community development groups, human services providers, and environmental stewardship efforts tied to Chautauqua Lake and the watershed. The foundation’s portfolio includes operating support, program support, capital campaigns, and consolidated support, suggesting it funds both ongoing organizational needs and specific projects. The grant list also shows recurring support to several local institutions over multiple years. In practice, that means the foundation is not limited to one-off awards; it returns to organizations serving cultural, social-service, and place-based priorities across Chautauqua County.
What Chautauqua Region Community Foundation Funds
Arts and civic culture are a major thread. The foundation gave $166,888 in 2025 to Reg Lenna Center for the Arts for program/operating support, and it also supported Robert H Jackson Center with $86,036 in 2023 and $75,997 in 2025. Community development is another clear area. Jamestown Center City Development Corporation received $210,690 in 2025 for program support, building on prior capital campaign support in earlier years. Human services appear throughout the list as well. YWCA Jamestown received $136,165 in 2025 for program/operating support, while United Way of Southern Chautauqua County received $81,133 in 2025 for program/operating support. Environmental work is also present. Chautauqua Lake and Watershed Management Alliance received $150,000 in 2024 for operating support and $125,000 in 2025 for program support.
How Chautauqua Region Community Foundation Gives
Typical awards are in the mid-five-figure range, with a p25 of $8,444, a median of $16,186, and a p75 of $32,205. The recent list also shows repeated support to the same organizations across multiple years, especially in Jamestown and other parts of Chautauqua County. As a mixed community foundation, it uses operating support, program support, capital campaign funding, and consolidated support rather than a single grantmaking format. The pattern is local and relationship-based rather than competitive or national in scope.
Financial Snapshot
Annual Giving
$3.7M
Total Assets
$168.3M
Total Revenue
$9.7M
Total Expenses
$7.6M
Typical Grant Size
Most grants fall between $8K and $32K, with a median of $16K.
25th Percentile
$8K
Median
$16K
75th Percentile
$32K
Geographic Reach
Local4 states funded
Funding intensity
LowHigh
Headquarters
Leadership
TORY L IRGANG
Accepts unsolicited proposals
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