Hawaii Community Foundation

What Hawaii Community Foundation does

Hawaii Community Foundation (HCF) is a 501(c)(3) public charity founded in 1916 and headquartered in Honolulu, with offices on Oahu, Kauai, Maui, and Hawaii Island. It manages more than 1,160 funds, including more than 300 scholarship funds, and serves individual and family donors, businesses, foundations, social-impact investors, Hawaii nonprofits, community organizations, and students. Its activities include donor-advised and designated/agency fund administration, grantmaking, scholarships, fiscal sponsorship, disaster response and recovery, and community-impact initiatives.

HCF's product surface includes DonorSphere, a secure online donor-fund portal; a Grants Portal for nonprofit applications; and a Scholarship Manager for student applications. Its programmatic products include the Stronger Hawai'i Fund, Maui Strong Fund, Hawai'i Resilience Fund, CHANGE Grants, and Promising Minds. The stated revenue model is charitable contributions, investment returns on the endowed corpus, contracts, and funds from private foundations rather than commercial product sales; no commercial pricing is disclosed. In 2023 HCF distributed $107.4 million in grants statewide, including $7.4 million in scholarships, which the source identifies as deployment rather than necessarily revenue. Engagement is conducted through its website, donor and professional-advisor channels, self-serve portals, and direct grantmaking with nonprofits, government agencies, and community organizations.

Name

Hawaii Community Foundation

Legal name

Hawaii Community Foundation

Website

https://hawaiicommunityfoundation.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1916

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Hawaii Community Foundation is a Honolulu-based 501(c)(3) public charity that manages donor-advised, scholarship, and other funds, distributes grants and scholarships, and supports Hawaii nonprofits, students, donors, and communities through disaster-recovery and impact-investing programs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Community Foundation Philanthropic Services

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321), Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Community Foundations (BPAGAKAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Private Foundations (BPAGAKAA), Philanthropy & Foundations Advisory (Donor-Advised Funds, Endowments) (FSAAABAH), Scholarship & Fellowship Foundations and Trusts (EDADAHAC)

Keywords

• Community foundation services
• Donor-advised funds
• Philanthropic grantmaking
• Scholarship fund administration
• Disaster recovery funding

Headquarters

HQ city

Honolulu

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Charitable Donations and Fund Management: HCF serves as a steward of philanthropic funds, receiving donations from individuals, families, businesses, and foundations into managed funds. The foundation administers over 1,160 funds including donor-advised funds, designated funds, and agency funds, generating revenue through investment returns on the endowed corpus. In 2023, HCF distributed $107.4 million in grants to the community from funds at HCF, contracts, and private foundations statewide.

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Hawaii Community Foundation is a 501(c)(3) public charity that stewards more than 1,160 philanthropic funds created by individuals, families, businesses, and other foundations. It administers donor-advised funds, designated funds, scholarship funds, and agency funds, and deploys capital through grants, scholarships, disaster recovery programs (Maui Strong Fund, Hawaii Resilience Fund, Stronger Hawaii Fund), and a Social Impact Investment Fund. In 2023, HCF distributed $107.4 million in grants and $7.4 million in scholarships across Hawaii.

Product overview

Hawaii Community Foundation operates as a philanthropic organization offering a unified platform of digital services for donors and nonprofits. The core product portfolio consists of three integrated online platforms: DonorSphere (donor fund management portal), Grants Portal (nonprofit grant application system), and Scholarship Manager (student scholarship application system). These are complemented by specialized disaster relief and recovery funds including the Stronger Hawai'i Fund, Maui Strong Fund, and Hawai'i Resilience Fund, as well as grant programs like CHANGE Grants and initiatives such as Promising Minds for early childhood mental health. The foundation serves as a steward of over 1,160 funds and distributed $107.4 million in grants in 2023.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• DonorSphere (Donor Portal)

Quantifiable outcome

• $107.4 million in grants distributed to the community in 2023, including $7.4 million in scholarships
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered minor.

• Lion CoffeeminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 15 May 2025Lion Coffee launched a special-edition 'Maui Strong, 100% Maui Coffee' product with 10% of proceeds going to HCF's Maui Strong Fund for wildfire recovery. The initiative supports Hawaiian farmers by sourcing beans exclusively from Mahi Pono Farms in Kahului and is sold online and at retailers across Hawaii.
• Mahi Pono FarmsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMahi Pono Farms in Kahului is the exclusive bean supplier for Lion Coffee's Maui Strong 100% Maui Coffee product, which supports HCF's Maui Strong Fund for wildfire recovery.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• California Community Foundation: One of the largest and oldest community foundations in the U.S., based in Los Angeles with a similarly broad grantmaking and donor-advised fund platform serving a defined regional community. Directly comparable to HCF in structure, DAF emphasis, and community focus.
• Silicon Valley Community Foundation: A major community foundation operating donor-advised funds, scholarship programs, and disaster/recovery grantmaking across a defined regional community. Comparable to HCF in DAF-centric model and tech-enabled donor services.
• Chicago Community Trust: One of the oldest community foundations in the U.S. managing permanent funds, donor-advised funds, and scholarship programs for a defined metropolitan region. Closely comparable structure and program mix to HCF.
• New York Community Trust: A century-old community foundation stewarding hundreds of charitable funds, awarding scholarships, and managing donor-advised and designated funds for the New York metropolitan area. Strong structural and mission overlap with HCF.
• Cleveland Foundation: The first community foundation in the U.S., managing permanent funds, donor-advised funds, scholarship programs, and grantmaking across defined community needs. Highly comparable structure and longevity to HCF.
• Greater Kansas City Community Foundation: A regional community foundation administering donor-advised funds, scholarships, and competitive grants across the Kansas City metro. Comparable scale, structure, and donor services platform to HCF.
• Boston Foundation: A major community foundation managing donor-advised funds, scholarship programs, and community grantmaking across the Greater Boston region. Directly comparable in fund-stewardship model and grantmaking scope.
• San Francisco Foundation: A Bay Area community foundation offering donor-advised funds, scholarships, and grantmaking focused on equity and community resilience. Comparable to HCF's CHANGE framework and donor-services portfolio.

Broad incumbents

• Ford Foundation: One of the largest U.S. private foundations with a global grantmaking and program-related investment platform. Compares to HCF as a broader incumbent in foundation philanthropy, but at vastly larger scale and with national/international scope.

Others

• Council on Foundations: The national membership association for U.S. foundations and corporate giving programs, including the CFNS accreditation HCF holds. Not a peer foundation but the relevant ecosystem/infrastructure organization whose standards and convenings shape community-foundation practice.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCMG3KmXI-eQkAexvf_L12kw
• Facebookfacebook.com/HawaiiCommunityFoundation
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/hawaiicommunityfoundation
• Instagraminstagram.com/hawaiicommunityfoundation
• Xx.com/HCFHawaii

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Hawaii Community Foundation