Who We Are

The Valentine Foundation is committed to empowering nonprofits and fostering leadership through our grants, low-interest loans, and leadership training programs. We prioritize organizations that align with our mission, particularly those supporting BIPOC, women, transgender, and gender-expansive communities. Our vision is a society where all women and girls can thrive, and we work tirelessly to bring this vision to life through strategic investments and support.

Mission

Valentine is a private foundation committed to achieving this vision in the Philadelphia region by:

Funding nonprofits working at the intersection of racial and gender justice. The trustees prioritize funding programs that pursue social change by addressing sexist and racist attitudes, policies and practices.
Strengthening the leadership capacity of organizations serving women and girls; and
Aligning our endowment with our vision.

We fund nonprofits in the Philadelphia region focused on racial and gender justice, prioritize leadership in organizations serving women and girls, and align our investments with these goals.

Our Legacy, Our Mission

Empowering Women, Transforming Futures

The Valentine Foundation, born from the vision and generosity of Phoebe Valentine in 1985, was founded to empower women and girls. After inheriting a fortune in 1974, Phoebe created the Foundation as a response to her terminal cancer diagnosis, dedicating her wealth to social change. Initially led by five pioneering women, the Foundation’s mission has evolved to focus on systemic change for women and girls. Today, the Valentine Foundation continues to advocate, educate, and fund initiatives that align with its original vision of empowerment and transformation.

The Valentine Foundation is committed to fully aligning its investments with our mission of gender and racial equity by 2025. Acknowledging that past investments have sometimes conflicted with our values; we will shift our portfolio to actively support our goals. This includes divesting from non-aligned investments and prioritizing impact investments that promote social change. We are committed to decolonizing our portfolio, guided by the principles in Decolonizing Wealth. We aim to have diverse investment managers, including BIPOC-owned firms, and will allocate 20% of our endowment to community investments, with a focus on the Greater Philadelphia area.