Mid-Shore Community Foundation

What Mid-Shore Community Foundation does

Mid-Shore Community Foundation is a 501(c)(3) public charity headquartered in the historic Bullitt House in Easton, Maryland, serving the five-county Mid-Shore region of Caroline, Dorchester, Kent, Queen Anne's, and Talbot Counties. Founded on December 8, 1992, through a $236,000 Linthicum bequest administered by the United Fund of Talbot County, the organization manages $175 million in assets across 611 charitable funds and has awarded more than $90.4 million in grants and scholarships over its 34-year history.

The foundation operates a community philanthropy platform offering donor advised funds, charitable gift annuities, charitable bequests, agency endowment funds, and fiscal sponsorship services, alongside a portfolio of specialized component funds (Women & Girls Fund, Caroline Foundation, Dorchester Education Foundation, George B. Todd Fund) that distribute targeted grants to local nonprofits. It also administers scholarship programs for high school seniors and nontraditional students across the five-county region, with online application and renewal infrastructure provided through the GrantInterface platform and the fcsuite.com donation portal. The foundation participates in the Endow Maryland Tax Credit Program, enabling donors contributing $500 or more to permanently endowed funds to receive a 25% Maryland state tax credit.

Revenue is generated through charitable fund management fees on the $175 million asset base, supplemented by program-related income tied to tax credit administration and ancillary nonprofit capacity-building services; the organization reinvests proceeds into grants, scholarships, and operational support for a 51-100 person staff. The go-to-market model is community-led, relying on relationships with local nonprofits, schools, community leaders, and donors rather than traditional sales channels, with direct in-person service at the Bullitt House headquarters complemented by online portals and email communications.

Name

Mid-Shore Community Foundation

Legal name

Mid-Shore Community Foundation, Inc.

Website

https://mscf.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1992

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Mid-Shore Community Foundation is a 501(c)(3) public charity managing $175 million across 611 charitable funds, serving donors, nonprofits, and students in five Maryland counties through grants, scholarships, donor advised funds, and planned giving services.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Community Foundation and Philanthropic Services

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321)

akta.pro primary industry

Community Foundations (BPAGAKAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Public Charities & Grantmaking Intermediaries (BPAGAKAE), Scholarship & Fellowship Foundations and Trusts (EDADAHAC), Philanthropy & Foundations Advisory (Donor-Advised Funds, Endowments) (FSAAABAH)

Keywords

• Community foundation services
• Charitable fund management
• Grant administration
• Scholarship administration
• Planned giving services

Headquarters

HQ city

Easton

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Charitable Fund Management: Manages 611 charitable funds for donors. Revenue derived from management of endowed funds and contributions. The foundation facilitates charitable giving through various fund types including donor advised funds, agency endowment funds, and component funds.
2. Endow Maryland Tax Credits: Manages the Endow Maryland Tax Credit Program which provides 25% state tax credits to donors contributing $500 or more to permanently endowed funds at the foundation.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Mid-Shore Community Foundation manages 611 charitable funds, distributes grants and scholarships, and provides planned giving, endowment management, and fiscal sponsorship services for donors and nonprofits across Caroline, Dorchester, Kent, Queen Anne's, and Talbot Counties in Maryland. It also administers the Endow Maryland Tax Credit program and supports local nonprofits through training and capacity-building programs.

Product overview

Mid-Shore Community Foundation operates as a platform providing philanthropic services across five Maryland counties. The core offering consists of charitable fund management including Donor Advised Funds, Agency Endowment Funds, and component funds (Caroline Foundation, Dorchester Education Foundation, George B. Todd Fund, Women & Girls Fund) that distribute grants to nonprofits. The foundation administers two main scholarship programs—Scholarships for High School Seniors and Scholarships for Nontraditional Students—along with payment processing and renewal services. Additional offerings include charitable planned giving instruments (Charitable Gift Annuities, Charitable Bequests), fiscal sponsorship for startup nonprofits, and the Endow Maryland Tax Credit program providing state tax incentives for endowment contributions. The foundation also provides training and networking opportunities to support regional nonprofits.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Mid-Shore Community Foundation Grants

Quantifiable outcome

• $175 million in assets managed
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 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 core.

• Bullitt House DonorscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2002Property generously donated in 2002 to ensure a permanent home for the Foundation and to support the growth of philanthropy across the Mid-Shore region. The historic property serves as the foundation's headquarters.
• United Fund of Talbot CountycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOriginal founding organization that established the Mid-Shore Community Foundation on December 8, 1992 using the Linthicum bequest as the nucleus gift. Recognized that forming a community foundation would facilitate additional charitable assets for the region.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Cleveland Foundation: The first community foundation in the United States, founded in 1914. Operates the same community foundation model of donor-advised funds, competitive grants, scholarships, and endowments, providing a benchmark for scale, governance, and impact metrics.
• Maine Community Foundation: A statewide community foundation serving rural Maine counties with a comparable model of regional grantmaking, scholarship administration, donor-advised funds, and component funds. Strong analog for MSCF given the similar rural, multi-county service footprint.
• Community Foundation of the Eastern Shore: Another Maryland-based regional community foundation serving the Lower Eastern Shore counties. Operates the same donor-advised fund, grantmaking, and scholarship model on an adjacent geography, making it the closest direct competitor for Mid-Shore donors and nonprofits.

Broad incumbents

• Fidelity Charitable: The largest donor-advised fund sponsor in the United States, affiliated with Fidelity Investments. Competes with MSCF on DAF convenience, brand recognition, and investment options, and is the primary benchmark for what MSCF must defend against in donor retention.
• Chicago Community Trust: One of the largest and oldest U.S. community foundations, with a broad portfolio of donor services, competitive grants, and policy initiatives. Useful benchmark for what MSCF could scale into as its AUM and influence grow.
• Silicon Valley Community Foundation: Large, technology-enabled community foundation operating donor-advised funds and grantmaking programs at scale. Demonstrates how a community foundation can leverage digital tools to compete with national DAF sponsors for high-net-worth and tech-driven donors.
• Greater Washington Community Foundation: Major Maryland-adjacent community foundation serving the greater Washington DC region. Competes for donor-advised fund and endowment dollars from Maryland-based high-net-worth individuals and family offices, especially those in the DC suburbs.
• Baltimore Community Foundation: One of Maryland's largest community foundations, headquartered in Baltimore. Offers overlapping grantmaking, scholarship, and donor-advised fund services and competes for statewide donors and major gifts, though it operates in a substantially larger metropolitan geography.

Regional players

• Calvert Impact Capital: A Maryland-based impact investing nonprofit that channels donor capital into community development and environmental causes. Adjacent rather than directly competitive, but competes for the same pool of Maryland mission-driven philanthropic dollars.

Emerging players

• National Philanthropic Trust: An independent national DAF sponsor that offers donor-advised funds with low minimums and a self-service online portal. Competes directly with MSCF's donor-advised fund offering for Maryland donors prioritizing convenience over local community ties.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries4 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 Mid-Shore Community Foundation