We all know the end of the year is a time for reflection: a look back on the highs and lows of the last 365 days, contemplating what it means for the year ahead. As we count down to 2026, we’re celebrating a different kind of reflection: the one you see in a mirror. Look at what you made possible, Miami. 

Below, we offer some highlights from 2025 and our gratitude for the many thousands of you who showed up for this community through your time, talents, passion, and generosity. 

The Miami Foundation’s mission is to build a community where everyone can thrive. It takes all of us – every philanthropist, nonprofit leader, volunteer, and engaged community member – working and giving together to shape Miami into the vibrant, magical city we know it can be. Let’s take a look at what we accomplished together this year. 

2025-27 Community Grants

We kicked off the year by opening our Foundation’s signature grant program, Community Grants, which invests in Miami’s greatest opportunities and most pressing issues. Amid an increasingly challenging funding landscape, and at a time when most grant programs are invite-only, Community Grants remains open to everyone’s ideas — designed to surface the community’s boldest thinking and share it more broadly.

We recognize that funding alone cannot meet every need. That reality shapes how we design Community Grants as a resource for the broader community — one intended to deliver value beyond any single funding decision by strengthening organizations, distilling their ideas, and sharing them with as many potential donors as possible. To that end, we hosted nearly 200 community leaders across three in-person Community Engagement sessions in February to help nonprofits bolster their applications and to surface insights from across the community. 

In all, 100 community members reviewed more than 900 proposals, representing Greater Miami’s boldest ideas for impact. Ultimately, advisors selected 127 organizations to receive more than $7 million in multi-year, general operating support over the next two years. But beyond the grant cycle itself, those 900 proposals lead to insights, introductions, and funding partnerships that help our Foundation support bolder, smarter philanthropy for our community year-round.

Launching Press Forward South Florida

Our local journalists and storytellers help us understand everything from what’s happening in our schools, where to volunteer, and when to hold our leaders accountable, to what to do on the weekend. Communities that lack local news coverage remain in the dark as abuses go unchecked, and corruption flourishes. In short, a thriving Greater Miami cannot exist without a thriving local news ecosystem.

That’s why in February, with $3 million in seed funding from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, we announced the launch of Press Forward South Florida in partnership with other community foundations across Broward, Miami-Dade, and Monroe counties.  

A local chapter of the national Press Forward effort (also housed at The Miami Foundation), this initiative ensures everyone has the information they need to take charge of their lives and our shared future, no matter where they live or what language they speak at home. 

As part of that launch, nearly 1,500 South Floridians helped us conduct an extensive assessment of our region’s existing media landscape and news and information needs through individual interviews, a regional survey, media diaries, and focus groups. 

10th annual State of Black Philanthropy

For the last decade, our Foundation has honored the rich legacy of leadership and generosity within Miami’s Black community through our State of Black Philanthropy. We commemorated the event’s milestone 10th anniversary in Historic Overtown on the week of May 20 to call attention to the 160th anniversary of Florida’s Emancipation Day. In the spirit of this pivotal moment of Black liberation, this year’s event – and complementary report – centered Black Miami’s freedom to live, thrive, and write the future. 

During our event, we turned the spotlight on our 2025 Honorees: Valencia Gunder (The Smile Trust, The Black Collective), Cornell Crews Jr. (The Community Reinvestment Alliance of Florida), Dr. Dorothy Jenkins Fields (The Black Archives), and philanthropists Tracey Robertson Carter and Christopher Carter, five honorees who have powerfully demonstrated love in action, uplifting communities and driving meaningful change. 

Our Foundation remains steadfast in our commitment to building a stronger, more equitable Miami. This cannot be done without a thriving Black community. 

The Jorge M. Pérez Family Foundation’s 10^th Anniversary

In May 2015, Related Group CEO Jorge M. Pérez and his wife, Darlene, launched The Jorge M. Pérez Family Foundation at The Miami Foundation, an expression of their deep commitment to charitable giving as signatories of the Giving Pledge and a way to establish a permanent legacy that their children can carry forward.

This year, we celebrated 10 years of partnership and impact, including the $73 million that The Pérez Family Foundation has invested in organizations and initiatives across a multitude of issue areas.

In the fall, past and present CreARTE grantees congregated at the landmark Pérez Art Museum Miami (PAMM) for the inaugural Pérez Grantee Partners Summit, a day of connection, creativity, collaboration, and celebration.

In celebrating the Pérez Family Foundation’s 10th anniversary, we also celebrated a relationship with the Pérez family that stretches back more than three decades – and their ongoing, shared commitment to building a Miami where everyone can thrive.

Miami Fellows Class XII

At the heart of a thriving Miami are the individuals who choose to lead with purpose: those who turn vision into action, who see challenges as opportunities, and who bring people together to create lasting change. The Miami Fellows program has long been one of the Foundation’s most powerful tools for nurturing that kind of leadership.

In 2025, we announced the Miami Fellows Class XII, a group of values-driven professionals 45 and under who are ready to bring Miami into its next chapter. This highly competitive process began with a pool of 169 applications. Twenty-three advisory committee members then helped us identify the 18 extraordinary leaders who make up Miami Fellows Class XII.

Give Miami Day 2025

Thanks to your generosity and dedication to local nonprofits, we took Give Miami Day to new heights in 2025. We opened Early Giving a day sooner and kicked off a week of generosity with the inaugural Give Miami 5K + Festival along the downtown Miami waterfront.  

Through the 5K, more than 2,600 runners donated over $135,000 to run in support of more than 300 nonprofits in our community. At the festival, 20 nonprofits spotlighted local issues and the work they’re doing to address them, and six local food and drink vendors donated a portion of the day’s sales to local nonprofits. Collectively, our community raised more than $883,000 for Miami’s nonprofits leading up to and during the event. We end the year with deep gratitude to Asher Raphael and the Raphael Family Foundation for making this incredible inaugural event possible. 

Each year, Give Miami Day serves as a testament to the boundless generosity that resides within the hearts of Miami’s residents. It’s a day when everyone comes together across all lines of difference to strengthen our community, act as a changemaker, and shape a Greater Miami that we’re proud to call home. 

This year’s Give Miami Day serves as the ultimate proof of what we’re able achieve when united. Thank you for what you made possible for this community. 

Join us in supporting food access efforts

In times of need, Miami always steps forward as a city fueled by generosity. This week as the availability of food stamps continues to be negotiated, 600,000+ Miamians are on the edge of their seats. Nearly 1 in 4 households in our community, including older adults, working families, and veterans, have been impacted by the pause in SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, aka Food Stamps) and WIC (Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children) benefits. 38% of local SNAP households include children. While we hope that benefits will be restored in the coming days, we cannot allow hundreds of thousands of our neighbors to go hungry in the meantime.

Across Miami, more than 75 nonprofit organizations prioritize food access as part of their core mission. Those organizations are stepping up to support the increased need, and they will be stretched thin. The previous federal cuts this year of $20+ million to food access programs had already created a fragile food emergency system, and organizations were already overwhelmed by supporting the volume of need with fewer resources. Families are now faced with making difficult choices between spending their limited financial resources on groceries, medicine, or housing.

Cuts to food stamps also have a significant economic impact on our region. Every year, more than $6 billion in revenue comes to Florida through SNAP benefits, meaning that retailers, convenience stores, and businesses will be deeply affected, as customers are no longer able to use those food stamps at local retailers. Similarly, 2,000 TSA and airport workers are working without pay right now because of the government shutdown, though thankfully still showing up to work. These workers are also struggling to feed their families, pay their rent, and fill their cars with gas. And the reality is that if our airport can’t operate, our local economy skids to a halt.

Mass hunger cannot be a consequence of government discord. We are committed to ensuring that all our neighbors have access to food. Last week, we awarded $150,000 in grants to organizations on the frontlines of food access, who are leading the way in ensuring that our neighbors do not go hungry. We have extended support to the following organizations: 

After a brief pause, The Miami Foundation is once again continuing its deepest investment in leaders — one that not only transforms people but entire communities.  At the heart of a thriving Miami are the individuals who choose to lead with purpose — those who turn vision into action, who see challenges as opportunities, and who bring people together to create lasting change. The Miami Fellows program has long been one of the Foundation’s most powerful tools for nurturing that kind of leadership. 

As we welcome the 18 extraordinary leaders who make up Class XII of the Miami Fellows, we asked one of our former fellows, Pilar Guzmán, to reflect on her experience: 

As a proud Miami Fellow, Class X, I want to share a bit of my own journey and why this program continues to mean so much to me. 

Miami: A Place We Call Home 

Miami is a vibrant mosaic of nationalities, cultures, and languages. It’s a city of beauty and energy, where the ocean meets innovation, and dreams take shape. For many of us, Miami is both a beginning and a destination. Like me, many Miamians came from other countries and built lives and futures here. 

Miami is dear to my heart. It’s where my children were born and where my company, Half Moon Empanadas, came to life. 

I arrived in Miami in 2006, knowing no one. I had no job or network. If someone had told me what the next twenty years would hold — the challenges, the blessings, the lessons, and the incredible people who would cross my path — I wouldn’t have believed it. All of this can be summarized in one word: Miami. 

The Miami Fellows Journey 

I became a Miami Fellow during a full, demanding chapter of my life — growing a business while raising two small children. The fellowship weekends were intense, yet they filled me with learning, inspiration, and, most importantly, deep human connection. 

The people I met — my classmates, the speakers, the mentors — became part of my story. What I didn’t realize at the time was how profoundly this network would shape my life and business years later. 

This is what makes the Miami Fellows program unique. It’s not simply leadership training — it’s an investment in people who are already serving and shaping our city, giving them the relationships, tools, and perspective to make their impact even greater. 

When Fellowship Meets Purpose 

During COVID, when nine out of ten restaurants closed, Half Moon Empanadas faced a terrifying reality: shutting down stores and laying off staff. But the Miami Fellows network helped us survive — and ultimately, transform. 

Through a connection with one of my classmates, Rashad Thomas, we were introduced to the County’s Emergency Department, which provided meals for seniors confined to their homes. Overnight, our kitchen pivoted from making empanadas to preparing thousands of meals for seniors. 

That moment was about more than keeping the business alive. It became a lifeline — for our employees, for local vendors, and for the people we served. It reminded me that leadership isn’t about titles or status. It’s about service. It’s about showing up for your community when it matters most. 

This is the ripple effect of investing in leaders. When you strengthen one person, you empower an entire ecosystem of change. 

The Power of Opportunity 

The Half Moon story began in Miami — a city that celebrates resilience and reinvention. From the start, we dreamed big. I’ll never forget competing for our first airport store at Miami International Airport. We were a small local business up against national giants. But I believed in the promise of this country, a place where hard work and integrity could open doors. 

And we won. 

That moment reaffirmed my belief in the American dream — and in Miami’s power to nurture that dream. Today, Half Moon Empanadas is proud to be Miami-born and growing to more than 15 airports across the nation. 

Why to Invest in Leaders 

The Miami Foundation believes that people build communities — and when we invest in leaders, we invest in the future of Miami itself. 

Leadership is the thread that holds our community together. It’s the courage to stand up for equity, the imagination to see what’s possible, and the compassion to ensure that as we grow, we bring everyone along. 

The Miami Fellows embody this spirit. They are educators, entrepreneurs, artists, advocates — people who love this city enough to roll up their sleeves and lead with purpose. The Foundation’s commitment to this program reflects a simple truth: when you pour into people, they pour back into the place they call home. 

 A Call to the Next Generation of Leaders 

Miami is our home. And with that comes responsibility. The opportunities we’ve been given must inspire us to give back — to invest our time, talent, and resources in the place that’s given us so much. 

Whether you lead a business, a classroom, a nonprofit, or a family, each of us has a role to play in shaping the future of this city. Together, we can build a Miami that creates wealth and dignity for all — a city that respects people regardless of where they come from or the accent they carry. 

We are the reflection of what this country will become in the years ahead. My hope is that each of us recognizes the incredible opportunity before us — and the responsibility that comes with it. Lead with purpose. Lift others as you rise. And never forget to give back to the community that helped you grow.