The Foundation's mission is to connect people who care with causes that matter, and we do this work right here in Lorain County. However, we see ourselves as part of a global network of community foundations and have been proud to share our expertise with our counterparts here in the United States and abroad. In 2000, Foundation President and CEO Brian Frederick was invited to be a part of the Transatlantic Community Foundation Network -- a project coordinated by the Charles Stewart Mott and Bertelsmann Foundations.  For nearly ten years, representatives from the United States, Canada, England, Belgium, Germany, Russia and several other European countries met to share ideas but also wound up building relationships.  The Community Foundation of Lorain County even hosted a meeting in 2007, proudly showing off our beautiful county to our guests and treating them to sailboard rides, line dancing, and barbecue.

We still maintain these powerful connections today.  Technology was a big priority in building our new facility, and we've recently added a camera so that we can Skype with our international friends.  A highlight of our October board meeting was a video interview with Peter Walkenhorst in Germany, now Senior Project Manager with the Bertelsmann Foundation.  Peter gave us an update and shared how community foundations are making a difference in Europe today.

While our focus is local, we understand and embrace the fact that our influence and resources are global.  We look forward to maintaining our international connections into the future -- to learning and sharing with our colleagues across the globe.