Our History

The Montana Community Foundation was born in 1988 from a desire to fill a gap created by the absence of endowed philanthropy in Montana. Historically, the fortunes that were amassed in Montana were exported out of state just like the raw materials—from beaver pelts to copper ore—that built them. In the absence of large in-state fortunes, a handful of philanthropic-minded citizens in Billings combined forces with volunteers from across Montana to build a statewide organization to promote the expansion of permanently endowed wealth—the kind of wealth that, managed professionally, could grow and keep on giving year after year to the people of Montana.

Launched with fewer than a dozen endowments and less than $300,000 in assets, today the Foundation holds more than 600 endowed funds and assets in excess of $50 million.

This unparalleled growth is due to support from private foundations that found Montana an ideal proving ground for innovative concepts in rural endowment development, the leadership of Governor Marc Racicot who made endowed philanthropy a priority of his administration, and enactment of a bold state tax credit to promote endowed contributions through planned giving. Ultimately, our success is due to the remarkable gifts of time, talent and dollars from a group of tenacious volunteers and founders, many of whom continue to serve the Foundation.

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