We are pleased to provide this report to the region highlighting our efforts over the past 24 months. Dorothy Rider Pool and Leonard Parker Pool were vibrant participants in community life in the Lehigh Valley. They actively engaged in, and often led, civic, arts, health, and education activities that contributed to the Commonwealth. Since the passing of Mr. and Mrs. Pool in 1975 and 1967 respectively, we, at The Rider-Pool Foundation have had the privilege of continuing their legacy of care and generosity toward their fellow citizens. This stewardship is manifest through support for community organizations that contribute to the quality of all our lives through education, human services, the arts, and community development. We express our compliments to all our grant recipients, and in particular, to the performing and fine art organizations, as well as the colleges and universities in the region. Their contributions enrich our lives and give witness to our feelings and aspirations.

In the years 2005 and 2006, the Rider-Pool Trustees provided $877,775 to not-for-profit agencies who work for the betterment of the community. The 153 grant awards are briefly described in this report. We continue to be impressed with the leadership and skill of the governing bodies, management, staff, and volunteers of the not-for-profit organizations across the region. We appreciate the contributions they make to improve our collective quality of life, and we hope our involvement has been of some assistance.

In 2003, the Brookings Institution released a report that pointed to emerging challenges to the quality of life in the Valley. Specifically highlighted were the facts that our region was losing its young people and the remaining population was aging. In addition, the region was experiencing a considerable decline in both well-paying jobs and educational attainment. This report and subsequent analyses commissioned by the Lehigh Valley Partnership highlighted the troubling interconnection between the loss of green space, the “hollowing out” of our downtowns, and the effects of suburban sprawl.

The Rider-Pool Foundation has had a long-standing strategic interest in community development strategies to address these challenges. Our interest is most recently expressed in our support for the work of Renew Lehigh Valley. Their community development work advances an agenda to revitalize our downtowns, preserve green space, and address quality of life issues. This interactive community development approach to housing, income, education, and human service issues also speaks to and informs our understanding of the interconnection of broad social determinants that influence the quality of life of our citizens. The considerable growth of the population in the Lehigh Valley in the past decade points to the importance of a regional cooperative problem-solving approach to major community development challenges that take these broad social factors into account. Most importantly, we are encouraged by Renew Lehigh Valley’s ability to stimulate citizen involvement in community meetings around these issues. For example, on a bitter night last December, several hundred people left the comfort of home to attend a community meeting to discuss the need for improved public transportation and the potential for light rail service in the region. That kind of community participation represents an encouraging trend and bodes well for our collective future.

In May 2006, The Rider-Pool Foundation had opportunities to meet with other national and local philanthropic and civic organizations interested in the revitalization of cities in Pennsylvania. In particular, we have had the benefit of meaningful conversations with our local funding colleagues, The Harry C. Trexler Trust and the United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley, on the topic of “place based” community development. The Casey Foundation has effectively utilized this approach to locality development in Baltimore. Going forward, there may be potential for cross-disciplinary approaches to working with the residents of specific neighborhoods in Allentown and across the Lehigh Valley to improve quality of life issues that directly affect them. This work would engage all of our funding interests--education, human services, and the arts¬--in a meaningful and mutually supportive fashion in one neighborhood over a sustained period of time. Over time, the “place based” work can evolve and expand to other neighborhoods.

Our work at The Foundation is complementary to the work of our philanthropic sister, The Dorothy Rider Pool Health Care Trust. The Trust was established upon the death of Leonard Pool in honor of Dorothy Rider Pool. Its mission is to enable Lehigh Valley Hospital and Health Network (LVHHN) to become a superior regional hospital and improve the health of the citizens of the region. The Pool Trustees desire to help LVHHN and its strategic partners to have a demonstrable, dramatic, and sustained impact on the health of the citizens of the region. This desire is informed by the growing appreciation of the effects of broad social, economic, educational, and cultural determinants on health. Accordingly, the future work of the Pool Trust may be increasingly interactive with other efforts of The Rider-Pool Foundation, especially as it relates to the health impact of early childhood and elementary school learning, improved prenatal care for low-income women, and support to enable our elderly citizens to maintain an independent and participatory lifestyle.

We invite you to contact The Foundation for more information about how to apply for funds. We send our deepest appreciation to the Trustees of The Rider-Pool Foundation for their wisdom and concern.


Edward F. Meehan
Executive Director