Roswell Park Alliance Foundation

Roswell Park Alliance Foundation

The foundation was established in 1991 by mother and daughter Anne D. Gioia and Donna M. Gioia in memory of Anne's daughter Katherine. It operates as the sole fundraising vehicle for Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit that functions as both a treatment hub and a research engine. The Gioia family remains active on the board, working alongside a group of local business leaders that includes M&T Bank Chairman and CEO René Jones and West Herr Automotive Group CEO Scott Bieler. The Alliance Foundation does not follow a traditional endowment model of diversified portfolio allocations. Instead, it acts as a pure conduit: donated capital is directed into research grants, clinical trials, and capital projects on the Roswell Park campus in Buffalo. The foundation supports initiatives including immunotherapy development, survivorship programs, and a mobile screening unit called EDDY, which delivers breast, lung, and prostate screenings across western New York. The Courage of Carly Fund, a sub-vehicle, addresses pediatric psychosocial needs. The annual Ride for Roswell event serves as the foundation's largest community-based fundraiser. The foundation's board draws from the region's corporate leadership and philanthropy networks. Scott Bieler serves as 2nd Vice Chair, and Lee C. Wortham of Barrantys LLC holds the role of Chair Emeritus. Trial lawyer Kyle Roche joined the board in 2024. The Alliance maintains membership in the National Association of Cancer Center Development Offices, where Kate Kaming, Vice President of Development, sits on the board of directors. Real estate holdings associated with the foundation's mission include the Scott Bieler Amherst Center, a Community Outreach & Engagement Building, and the main Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center campus — all clustered in Buffalo. The endowment exists but a deployment figure is not publicly disclosed. The foundation's structural differentiator is its monopoly on philanthropic funding for a single, deeply specialized institution. Unlike broadly diversified healthcare foundations that sponsor multiple hospitals or disease-agnostic research, the Alliance Foundation exists exclusively to feed Roswell Park's NCI-designated engine. That concentration means every dollar raised moves through one governance structure and one institutional strategy, with no allocation to outside grantees or unrelated causes.