WHO WE ARE.

The Aurora Women and Girls Foundation galvanizes resources to increase economic security, educational attainment, and leadership for women and girls in the Greater Hartford region. 

• We conduct research and convene the community to promote understanding of gender issues, and to foster collaboration for effective solutions. 
• We educate and engage men and women in the power of philanthropy through a gender lens to improve social and economic outcomes for women and girls, along with their families and communities.
• We implement strategies — including targeted grantmaking — that take aim at obstacles to empower women and girls in Greater Hartford.

Our mission, vision, values, and strategies support all women and girls inclusive of sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression. 

In 2000, a group of community leaders came together to uplift women and girls through focused philanthropy. Knowing that women and girls' funds had succeeded in creating meaningful progress in other parts of the country, founders Leah Bailey Moon, Felice Gray-Kemp, Eileen Kraus, Paddi LeShane, and Marie O’Brien joined with other women to establish the Aurora Foundation.



The growing foundation organized itself, raised funds, established priorities, and identified program opportunities. Aurora grew consciously and deliberately, building bridges in the community and delving into the issues to develop a deep understanding of both the potential and the challenges in the area. In its early years, a “by women, for women” golf tournament hosted by Nykesha Sales supplemented community donations. In 2005, the foundation launched the Signature Breakfast, which became an important annual fundraiser. In 2004, Aurora started distributing micro-grants to Hartford area organizations, and by 2016 it had reached a distribution of nearly $500,000 in grants.