Virginia Hodgkins Somers Foundation
Dear Friends of The Virginia Hodgkins Somers Foundation,
For several decades we have facilitated two grant cycles a year to honor Virginia Somers. She and her husband, Warren Somers, were generous to their community, and we have tried to emulate their interest in funding organizations that help others.
For the current fiscal year (October 1, 2024 – September 30, 2025) we are taking a pause from open grant applications to evaluate where we are and where the Foundation will be in the future. We appreciate the many partnerships and collaborations we have made over these years, and will communicate our future plans as soon as we have finalized them.
We have a couple of Board updates to share:
Gordon Ayer has served the Somers family as a trusted advisor for over 40 years, beginning with Ginny and Warren Somers, and continuing with The Virginia Hodgkins Somers Foundation after they both passed away in the 1990’s. We want to thank Gordon for his years of commitment as he retires from the Foundation to spend more time relaxing in Florida.
In addition, we welcome David May as a new member of the Board. Dave has many years of work experience in the insurance industry, followed by a career working for nonprofits as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker. He has served on nonprofit boards in the Greater Portland area. Dave looks forward to meeting our grantees over the next few months.
Susan Ayer and Carolyn May will continue as Foundation Board members.
We are not inactive this year!
Save these dates – Thursday, September 25 and Friday, September 27, 2025 for our annual Nonprofit Leaders Retreat at Ferry Beach Retreat and Conference Center. We plan to continue to help you hone your storytelling for greater impact, as well as offer opportunities to make new alliances and connect with other leaders.
We are working to provide some of the professional development ideas you shared at the last retreat. More to come…
Please feel free to check in to let us know what your organization is doing and planning to do.
Best wishes,
Susan Ayer, Carolyn May, David May