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Community Foundation of North Florida
Founded in 1997, the Community Foundation of North Florida was established to pool and deploy charitable capital across the Florida Panhandle.
Community Foundation of North Florida
Founded in 1997, the Community Foundation of North Florida was established to pool and deploy charitable capital across the Florida Panhandle. President and CEO Katrina Rolle oversees an organization structured to aggregate donor-advised funds, bequests, and partnership grants. The Knight Foundation Fund, managed locally in collaboration with the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, channels national grantmaking budget into Tallahassee-specific initiatives. The foundation's balance sheet mixes traditional endowment allocations with illiquid charitable instruments. Reported asset holdings include core real estate funds, REIT index funds, beneficial interests in a charitable remainder trust, and life insurance policies, all anchored around its Tallahassee base. Grantmaking flows through the Helping Today, Shaping Tomorrow (HTST) program, which directs funds to regional nonprofits. The presence of the Knight Foundation Fund adds a co-investment dimension, as the larger national foundation relies on CFNF for local distribution and oversight. The board draws executive talent from regional banking: Chair Susan Payne Turner serves as an executive at Prime Meridian Bank, and Treasurer Beth Corum holds a role at Capital City Bank. These relationships embed the foundation within North Florida's commercial and civic leadership. CFNF maintains accreditation under National Standards for U.S. Community Foundations and participates in the Florida Philanthropic Network, Southeastern Council of Foundations, and Greater Tallahassee Chamber of Commerce. What distinguishes CFNF is its hybrid structure as a grantmaking endowment that doubles as a local fiduciary for national funders. Rather than operating solely as a pass-through for donor checks, the foundation holds real asset exposure — including real estate funds and life insurance policy interests — on its own balance sheet, a posture more common among larger coastal community foundations than among peers its size in the Southeast.
General information
Firm type
Endowment / Foundation
Year founded
1997
Location
Region
North America
Country
United States
City
Tallahassee
Corporate office
Tallahassee, Florida, United States
Principals
Katrina Rolle
President & CEO
Susan Payne Turner
Board Chair
Beth Corum
Treasurer
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
Who runs investment decisions at Community Foundation of North Florida?
President and CEO Katrina Rolle leads the organization and its strategic direction. The board includes Treasurer Beth Corum, an executive at Capital City Bank, which suggests that banking and fiduciary expertise informs asset oversight. Specific investment committee structures are not publicly detailed.
How does CFNF's partnership with the Knight Foundation work?
The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation maintains a donor-advised fund at CFNF that serves as a local grantmaking vehicle for Tallahassee. This arrangement allows the national foundation to deploy capital into the region using CFNF's community knowledge and administrative infrastructure.
What does the foundation's portfolio actually hold?
CFNF's assets include core real estate funds, REIT index funds, and beneficial interests in a charitable remainder trust and life insurance policies. The concentration in real estate and insurance-based instruments gives the portfolio a different risk profile than standard equity-and-bond community foundation endowments.
Is CFNF a single-family office or a community foundation?
CFNF is a community foundation, not a family office. It aggregates charitable capital from multiple donors, families, and institutions — most prominently the Knight Foundation — rather than managing wealth for a single family. Its $101M asset base (Altss estimate) comes from pooled donor funds and grant partnerships.
Does CFNF participate in fund commitments or only direct grantmaking?
The foundation holds direct interests in real estate funds and REIT index funds, which function similarly to fund commitments. It does not appear to operate as a limited partner in private equity or venture capital funds, but the charitable remainder trust and insurance policy holdings indicate a willingness to hold structured, illiquid instruments.
Profile maintained by Altss using OSINT (open-source intelligence), regulatory filings, licensed data partners, and verified direct submissions. Read the methodology. Last updated: . Continuous refresh with full update cycles at least every 30 days.
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