Winona Community Foundation

About Winona Community Foundation

Winona Community Foundation’s giving centers on Winona County and the organizations that anchor daily life there: human services, education, health, arts, and civic projects. The largest recent grant in the data went to Winona Volunteer Services for human services at $2,029,222 in 2025, showing how much of the foundation’s support flows to core community infrastructure. Other major awards include $158,370 to the Foundation for Winona Area Public Schools for general support and the same amount to Catholic Schools Foundation of Winona for general support, both in 2023. The foundation also backs community-building projects beyond direct social services. Recent examples include $148,785 to the City of Winona for civic and community development, $75,000 to Sandbar Storytelling Festival for arts, culture and humanities, and $126,900 to Hiawatha Valley Mental Health Center for human services. Its stated work includes managing endowed funds, granting to nonprofits, and providing donor services and community leadership, which fits the mix of endowed local support, scholarship aid, and community grantmaking seen in the record. The overall pattern is locally focused, with most grants landing in Minnesota and a large share in the foundation’s headquarters state.

What Winona Community Foundation Funds

Human services is a major theme in the recent grants. Winona Community Foundation gave $2,029,222 to Winona Volunteer Services for human services in 2025, and another $126,900 to Hiawatha Valley Mental Health Center for human services that same year. Family support also appears in grants to Family & Children’s Center, including $67,184 for human services in 2025. Education and scholarships are another clear lane. The foundation awarded $58,000 to Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota for educational support in 2025 and $31,350 to Cotter Schools for educational support in 2025. Scholarship activity is part of the foundation’s active programs, including student awards and a scholarship program for students in the Winona area and Winona County. Arts and community life show up in place-based projects as well. The foundation granted $75,000 to Sandbar Storytelling Festival for arts, culture and humanities, and $70,000 to Minnesota Masterpiece Hall for the same area of work in 2025.

How Winona Community Foundation Gives