MONTICELLO — The Community Foundation of Orange and Sullivan (CFOS) organizes philanthropy throughout two large counties and a new office in Monticello now makes their regional spread a little more manageable. Instead of meeting in donors’ homes or a local eatery, the CFOS staff members now have a physical office in Sullivan County where they can conduct business: in the Sullivan County Chamber of Commerce building located at 196 Old Rte 17 in Monticello. 

President and CEO Elizabeth Rowley said their headquarters are still in Montgomery, NY, but that they’ve been using the Monticello space as a satellite office since the beginning of February. 

“We’ve been doing work in Sullivan County since 2007, so now that we have a place in Monticello, we can use it to store supplies and have meetings; this was long overdue,” Rowley said. 

Rowley oversees daily operations, strategy, board members, and charitable giving in her role as President and CEO of CFOS, a tax-exempt, non-profit, publicly supported, philanthropic institution that builds permanent funds to support the communities of Orange and Sullivan Counties. The funds benefit a large variety of individuals and businesses, but Rowley is especially proud of “growing the scholarships for high school students and adults re-entering education.”

Rowley said their new office space is a perfect fit because the Sullivan County Chamber of Commerce and CFOS share similar values and goals; “[The Sullivan Chamber of Commerce] supports businesses of all sizes and both [organizations] enhance and enrich the community of Sullivan County.” 

Rowley said one of her biggest challenges is “continuing to meet emerging community needs; a lot of families are really struggling right now” with rising costs of living. She also said unpredictability in the stock market may cause donors to be more hesitant in making contributions.

Despite the challenges of her work, Rowley maintains an upbeat attitude and tries to inspire great things in those around her: “I always tell people we are not just for the wealthy- there are always opportunities for anyone who has a desire to help those less fortunate. [I want to] inspire people to take action and be a part of positive change in their community.” 

On May 21, CFOS will be hosting its 10th annual Hudson Valley Gives, a 24-hour event that provides hundreds of regional nonprofits with an online platform to reach donors. Last year’s event raised almost $800,000, and the total raised over the last 10 years was over $4.5 million. If you are interested in applying for a grant or scholarship, or if you would like to make a charitable contribution, you can visit the organization’s website at cfosny.org.