Dear friend,
This summer has brought moments of profound happiness like being in community with so many funders and grassroots leaders in Nashville at Neighborhood Funders Group’s (NFG) 2025 National Convening. At the same time, we’ve also had to contend with the present political moment, navigating organizing both within philanthropy and in our backyards. As we hold the duality of carving out space for joy and nourishment, and prepare to resist the rapid rise of authoritarianism that is gutting resources people depend on for survival, there is a role for NFG’s network to, at a minimum, engage in grantmaking practices that reduce the harm being done to those at the sharpest intersections of oppression.
For NFG’s nearly 45 year history, we have been a steadfast presence in philanthropy, pushing funders to more deeply and effectively support grassroots organizing and power building led by people of color and low-income communities. We continue our work this fall under new executive leadership.
In this month’s newsletter, we are sharing a fond farewell from Amy T. Morris, who has been a consistent leader in NFG’s community for over a decade. Though we know it isn’t “the end,” Team NFG is so grateful for all of the time and dedication Amy has invested in the organization. We are also excited to share a message from NFG’s new Co-Presidents Amanda Andere and Stephanie Chan, who are eager to introduce themselves and begin partnering with all of you!
A Farewell Message from Amy T. Morris
It has been an absolute honor to serve as Interim President for NFG since the summer of 2022. This organization has been a part of my philanthro-life since very nearly my first day in the sector. Across these 15+ years—as a member, Board member, and staff member—it has been for me, as for so many of us, my political home in philanthropy.
Serving as interim was never just a job—it was a labor of love, a service to an organization that has held me so well in my work. I especially reflect on the learnings about how philanthropy can best support new forms of organizing from my participation as a member of Funders for a Just Economy (when it was still the Working Group on Labor Community Partnerships), where in the 2010s, we aligned funding in support of the worker center movement and the fight to raise the minimum wage. I will hold onto the powerful ways my understanding of place-based grantmaking was shaped by the early funders of Amplify Fund when I served as founding director. And, from the many, many individual interactions I have had with so many of you, I will carry reshaped ideas, deepened insights, and sustained support in our shared work.
The transformation of NFG from 2022 to today has been significant—we dove deep into hard parts of the organization’s past to understand challenges of leadership and decide to move forward with a co-leadership model; we regathered and welcomed in rounds of newcomers to the NFG fold; and we negotiated the organization’s first collective bargaining agreement with NFG’s staff union and began the work to implement that agreement. We certainly did not solve every ill NFG has ever faced, and with all humility I can say we did not get everything completely right along the way, but as I prepare to leave my staff position at NFG this week, I can say I am stepping out of a significantly different organization than the one I stepped into leadership of three years ago.
This work relied on the wisdom and insights of many:
- Former NFG leadership graciously shared reflections on past experiences;
- Staff raised their hand to join transition efforts, while steadily managing their daily work with members inside a transforming organization;
- Board members time and again said “yes” to one more conversation, question, or challenge to how to evolve the organization;
- Consultants from Imagine Us and Do Good Connections brought expansive thinking and care to every move with our team;
- An evolving senior leadership team with the skill and will to lead;
- And our members—from long-timers to brand new—who kept affirming the purpose and importance of NFG.
I am grateful beyond measure to all of you.
And, I won’t be going far in my next step: I am thrilled to share that starting in the new year I will become the President of the Jessie Smith Noyes Foundation, a longtime NFG member. Passing the helm of this organization to Stephanie Chan and Amanda Andere gives me immense pride and confidence in NFG’s next phase, and I look forward to continuing to organize together!
Onward,
Amy T. Morris
A Message from NFG's New Co-Presidents
Amanda Andere and Stephanie Chan
As we step into the role of Co-Presidents of NFG, we first want to give immense thanks to Amy Morris for leading the organization through a period of transition with such care. We have heard, seen, and felt her dedication to NFG and its people, and we are immensely grateful for the work she has done to prepare us to step into this role.
In the time that has passed since our appointment was first announced, many have been curious about who we are and what our vision is. We are both daughters of immigrants and our ancestors’ wildest dreams. Though we are different in many ways, we are aligned in how we move through the world: with a spirit of abundance, collective care, principled struggle, and joy. We believe that the liberated world we are working for must be rooted in being in right relationship with others and is not devoid of art, cultural traditions, rest, and joy.
After seven years of collaboration at Funders Together for Housing Justice (formerly known as Funders Together to End Homelessness), we have a deep respect for NFG’s legacy and the courage it has taken to adopt this new leadership model. As our official tenure begins, we want to make it clear that we are here to build with you—not just as leaders, but as co-conspirators. Since, as Amy mentioned above, so many of you have offered your stories of why you say “yes” to engaging with NFG, we wanted to share a bit more about our fierce commitment to helping this network lead this sector toward justice.
I said “yes” because NFG is building power with intention, in relationship, and with real accountability to movements. What excites me most about is that it doesn’t treat this work like a trend—it treats it like a long-term commitment.
I said “yes” to NFG because I believe in its purpose and possibility as a political home where philanthropy can unapologetically align itself with movements. NFG invites us to be bold and reflective at the same time— to sit in principled struggle and loving accountability in order to build the infrastructure that movements need to thrive.
As for our vision for NFG, we plan on co-creating it with you. We know this work takes shared courage and trust. One of our priorities is to listen intently to this incredible network about how NFG can continue to be your political home and a place for you to organize with other funders. We want to engage membership and movement leaders in deep strategizing for our collective success given the current moment we find ourselves in—with homes and land being destroyed in the wake of unrelenting natural disasters, power concentrated in a ruling class of racist billionaires, and democracy in free fall. We look forward to gathering in community to envision what’s possible when systems work for all of us and allow us all to be free. As stewards of NFG’s mission, we will foster shared power, nurture organizational health, and help our network lead with clarity, care, and collective purpose.
In solidarity,
Stephanie Chan and Amanda Andere
