Mike Theesen

On the way home from having dinner in California on Feb. 4, Mike Theesen was heading home over the Thomas Johnson Bridge to Calvert County when he passed what appeared to be a disabled vehicle in the oncoming lane, displaying hazard lights.

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Community Foundation of Charles County

By Staff Writer Daniel Gross

With a vision for making Charles County the best place to live and give, the Charles County Community Foundation firmly rooted itself and became incorporated in December of 2005. Francis Chaney and Dick Gregory were the originators at this point, and were the first to seed money into the organization.

Now in mid 2007, the community foundation has expanded and is more functional in the community than ever. Through executive director Gretchen Heinze, who stepped in the towards the end of last September, the foundation has developed a Grants Committee, Marketing Committee, Community Relations Committee, and Development Committee - each committee reports to the Board of Directors.

A community foundation is an organization in a specific county or community that creates a plan of action for the betterment of the community. A community foundation starts with a needs assessment on the specific area to find what the greatest needs are first. The Charles County Community Foundation is a non-profit organization, as with any community foundation, so with being a public charity, the foundation strives to develop unique forms of giving. They work towards creating solutions that fit every solution to a problem in a community.

This year in Charles County, a funder has agreed to pay for this year’s country-wide needs assessment and after interviewing four companies, the foundation has selected Health Management Consultants of Columbia, Maryland to conduct the needs assessment study. This study is projected to complete by the fall of 2007 and will cover the following areas: Arts and Culture, Environment, Education and Scholarships, Health and Wellness, General Community Improvements - Transportation, Housing, Recreation and others, and Youth Initiatives. The Charles County Community Foundation is the 11th community foundation in Maryland. The other counties in Southern Maryland, St. Mary’s and Calvert, are on their way to and close to opening Community foundations in their own communities.