Awarding over $3 million to Latino-serving organizations in the first quarter of the year, while launching plan to become the first national foundation for Latino communities in the U.S.

The Latino Community Foundation (LCF) today announced that its total grantmaking since 2018 has surpassed $50 million, marking a major milestone in its mission to unleash Latino civic and economic power. The announcement comes alongside LCF’s first quarter 2026 grantmaking, which includes the launch of its inaugural national fund and continued investments in communities across California and southwestern states.

Earlier this year, LCF launched the Community Protection Fund, its first-ever national fund, designed to rapidly mobilize resources to grassroots organizations responding to violent and unlawful immigration enforcement actions and to support community safety efforts. In its first funding round, the fund awarded $250,000 in grants to six organizations in Minnesota, California, and Nevada.

• Comunidades Organizando el Poder y la Acción Latina (COPAL), Minneapolis, MN
• Latino Economic Development Center, Saint Paul, MN
• Latino Communities United in Service (CLUES), Saint Paul, MN
• Immigrant Defenders Law Center, Los Angeles, CA
• Building Healthy Communities Kern, Bakersfield, CA
• Make the Road Nevada, Las Vegas, NV

In addition to launching its national fund, LCF invested $3 million in the same quarter to advance voter mobilization efforts, support research on the economic impact of immigration enforcement actions and sustain long-term recovery efforts for communities impacted by the Los Angeles wildfires.

“This milestone reflects what is possible when philanthropy trusts and invests in the grassroots leadership within Latino communities,” said LCF CEO and former HUD Secretary Julián Castro. “At a time when Latino families are facing increasing threats—from economic instability to harmful immigration policies—our work is focused on ensuring communities have the resources they need not just to respond, but to thrive. Scaling that vision nationally is fundamental to a flourishing future for all.”

Together, these investments reflect LCF’s commitment to both meeting urgent needs and building long-term power, from protecting families and advancing economic opportunity to strengthening civic participation and community resilience.

“Everything we invest in is grounded in the belief that Latino communities already hold the solutions—and philanthropy’s role is to resource that leadership at scale,” said LCF Board Chair Lydia Villarreal. “Surpassing $50 million in grantmaking is not just a milestone for LCF, it’s evidence of a collective movement to invest in a more inclusive, prosperous future for our country.”

Since 2018, LCF has supported more than 550 organizations and provided capacity-building resources to over 120 nonprofit leaders, helping to strengthen an ecosystem of grassroots organizations across California and, increasingly, the Southwest. Latinos are shapers of culture, engines of economic growth, and drivers of political power. Yet, despite Latinos making up nearly one-fifth of the U.S. population, less than 2 percent of philanthropic funding reaches Latino-serving organizations.

LCF knows that we cannot build a flourishing nation while underinvesting in one of the fastest growing communities within the country. LCF’s continued growth—including its national expansion, Building a Flourishing Latino Future, and the development of a $250 million endowment—aims to close that gap and ensure sustained investment in Latino communities for generations to come.

About Latino Community Foundation

The Latino Community Foundation (LCF) is on a mission to unleash the civic and economic power of Latinos in California. LCF has the largest network of Latino philanthropists in the country and has raised $100 million to build Latino civic and political power. It is the only national foundation solely focused on investing in Latino communities in California, the Southwest region, and across the country. In 2023, LCF named former Housing and Urban Development Secretary, Julián Castro as their CEO. For more info, please visit: latinocf.org.

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