January 2025

Three is my favorite number. I can’t cite a particular reason why. Somewhere along the way, I assigned it some magical quality, and it stuck. As we step into Camber Foundation’s third year of service to Eastern North Carolina, I trust that “three” will not let me down.

We start by reflecting on a year filled with intentional growth, creativity, and progress. We welcomed new team members, expanded our network, increased our philanthropic investment in the region, and honored our commitment to capacity-building for nonprofit organizations – always hearkening back to the community voices that inspired our beginnings. As we advance in our own development, we embrace the heightened accountability that comes with growing up, while remaining rooted in gratitude and energized by new possibilities.

In last year’s letter, I shared our plans to add to the Camber team, allowing us to strengthen our presence and to expand our opportunities for learning and for connecting with Eastern NC nonprofits. Adding four team members makes a big impact, and they each bring valuable expertise, unique perspective, and genuine enthusiasm for the mission. If you haven’t had the chance to meet them yet, I encourage you to visit our staff page to learn a little about each of them and their roles at Camber.

Speaking of our mission, we dedicated time in 2024 putting it into words. As our board and team considered Camber’s non-negotiables, we noted our belief that solutions come from within community and our responsibility to support the talent, know-how, and drive that bring those solutions to life. Listening to the voices of the communities we serve is at the heart of our origin story, and you can expect us to convene conversations again in 2025 to guide our direction and motivation.

We heard last year that customized capacity-building opportunities are most valuable in developing the expertise of leaders and promoting the sustainability of nonprofit organizations.  We are proud of our grantees who completed a capacity-building training and coaching program in 2024, and to continue our commitment to this work, we recently launched a storytelling series for a group of Camber grantees. Your input informed the design of this program, and we can’t wait to see how these nonprofits hone their skills and inspire us all with their stories. We will be sure to share their success.

And, of course, a measure of our growth is our steady increase in philanthropic funding for Eastern NC. In our first two years, we distributed a total of $5 million in grants to support nonprofits serving the region, and by the end of this year, that total will be $8.5 million. We begin with an open grant cycle, which launches at the end of January. If you don’t already follow our updates, please connect with us on social media and through our email correspondence.

Yes, three is my favorite number, and while I have no doubt that this third year for Camber Foundation will live up to its magic, that won’t happen on its own. Thank you for supporting and engaging with us in this year of purposeful learning, thoughtful dialogue, and meaningful investment in Eastern North Carolina.

With sincerity,

Leslie Ann Jackson, President & CEO