About Aurora

The Aurora Foundation formed to serve as a catalyst for change in the lives of women and girls in Greater Hartford, with the intended effect of unlocking the potential of their families and surrounding communities.

• 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 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.

Aurora also encourages women and girls to engage in philanthropic efforts that benefit their communities. We offer advocacy, annual structured learn-by-doing training in grantmaking, and recognition of their efforts.

Effective philanthropy is strategic.

Philanthropy means love of humanity, in the sense of caring, nourishing, developing, and enhancing human conditions.

While charity relieves the pains of social problems, philanthropy attempts to solve those problems at their root causes.

In 2000, a group of community leaders came together to lift up 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 drew together with other women to establish the Aurora Foundation.

The growing foundation organized itself and 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 our area. In 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 programs that could make a big difference with a small boost in the budget. With the 2016 awards, Aurora reached nearly $500,000 in grants, an important milestone for a young local foundation.

Due not only to the fundraising and grantmaking but also its groundbreaking research on the status of women and girls in Hartford County, the Aurora Foundation has become a powerful vehicle in addressing the needs of women and girls to ensure a level playing field for all.

Thanks to the vision of early believers and their discipline in building a solid financial base, Aurora today has a growing capacity to realize the founders’ dreams.

In pursuit of the twin goals of strategic grantmaking and community collaboration, since 2013 the Aurora Foundation has worked with partners to collect and evaluate data on the status of women and girls in Hartford County. Aurora’s influential findings detail current demographics and the status of women and girls in education, economic security, leadership, crime and safety, and health and wellbeing.

Not only did the results convince the Aurora board to focus on education for the next few years of grants, but the report also provides powerful evidence that helps other agencies and organizations in the region identify key areas of need.

From the beginning, Aurora Foundation supporters have been a diverse group. The 2016 annual report recognized about 400 individual and family donors, plus nearly 100 companies and organizations that contributed to our work.

Our supporters include men, whom we welcome to collaborate in making a difference in our communities by investing in women. Gender issues affect us all.

The  Signature Breakfast is Aurora’s annual fundraiser  and is also an opportunity to celebrate our grant recipients, awardees, and donors.

We cannot thank Aurora’s supporters enough. Together we empower women and girls, unlocking the potential in their families and communities.

Our office

The office is located at the corner of South Main Street and Boulevard in the center of West Hartford.

We have ample free parking in the lot accessed from Boulevard. Keep in mind that it’s best to make an appointment due to our lean staff.

Aurora Women and Girls Foundation
80 South Main Street
West Hartford CT 06107

(860) 881-4926

For directions, map, and more detailed contact info, consult our Contact page.

Maggie Willard – Interim Executive Director

For the past 14 years, Maggie served as a Senior Donor Services Officer at the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving. There she worked with donor advised funds, grantmaking, the Foundation’s scholarship program and also with the Catalyst Endowment and Latino Endowment giving circles. Prior to this, she was Director of Operations at the Donaghue Medical Research Foundation, a significant grantmaker ($8 million annually) supporting medical research.

Laurie Robillard – Program Coordinator

Laurie most recently served as the Grants Manager and Development Coordinator for Leadership Greater Hartford. In this role she secured and managed program and operational grants and provided support for the organization’s individual giving and membership programs. Prior to her work at Leadership Greater Hartford, Laurie was a full-time parent to her three children.