Ramsey County History – Fall 1990: “The Saint Paul Foundation and Its Past Fifty Years”

The Saint Paul Foundation and Its Past Fifty Years

Author: Virginia Brainard Kunz

The Saint Paul Foundation began in 1940 with nothing. Ten years later very little had changed. Thirty years later it was rich and helping other foundations find their way. How did this happen? This article follows the foundation’s history in detail. It took 40 years for the foundation to reach a level of wealth and expertise where it could undertake significant grant making. The foundation’s giving then focused on areas of particular local need: Southeast Asian immigrants, adult literacy, education of minority children and youth, public libraries, Pacific Rim economics, an Emergency Care Fund, battered women, the homeless, a Community Reinvestment Fund, AIDS, renovation of the Landmark Center and construction of the Ordway Center, and a host of others. By 1990 the Saint Paul Foundation had assets of $175 million and ranked in the top ten of community foundations nationwide.

PDF of Kunz article

PDF of St. Paul Foundation photo essay