Community - Ashforth

Building Better Communities…Together

Ashforth and our divisions strongly believe that investment and civic responsibility go hand in hand. Focusing our philanthropic efforts on education and healthcare, we are committed to making an impact on our communities through corporate citizenship, civic involvement, and volunteerism. Collectively, our financial contributions, our in-kind contributions and employee volunteer hours have helped to advance many worthy community organizations where we live and work. Our goal is to build stronger communities, together.

Ashforth Employees’ Volunteer Support and Additional In-Kind Support

Volunteerism is vital to building better communities together. Ashforth has a priority to encourage and facilitate employee volunteerism. With a long and respected history of providing financial and in-kind service to numerous nonprofit organizations, we understand helping our nonprofits, whether with dollars or just a helping hand, makes our communities stronger, and that benefits everyone personally. Our employees generously give their time, expertise and dollars by volunteering in numerous ways including participating in Ashforth’s employee volunteer program initiatives and community-benefiting events held at our buildings, as well as volunteering in their own home towns. In addition, our employees volunteer 1,600 hours participating on nonprofit boards and committees. We are proud of our employees’ commitment, dedication and time to support many local organizations in need.

Our employees help our local community in many ways:

Provided in-kind marketing for REACH prep and for the Kids Helping Kids’ annual Handled with Care boutique and Gift of Giving events.
7 Ashforth employees participated on Impact Fairfield County’s Grants Review Committee – reviewing grant applications and attending site visits at nonprofits.
24 Ashforth employees along with family and friends, volunteered and joined Team Ashforth for the annual Hope in Motion Walk, supporting Stamford Health’s Bennett Cancer Center and helping raise funds for critical patient programs and services.
11 employees, along with family and friends, volunteered to fly the Bumble the Abominable Snowman balloon for the Stamford Downtown Special Services District’s annual Parade Spectacular.
More than 20 members of the Women of Ashforth (WOAH) volunteered at the Stamford Museum & Nature Center, improving the grounds around the new Planetarium & Astronomy Center by graveling walkways, removing invasive plants, replacing trail markers, and stacking firewood to support the visitor experience.
Provided in-kind parking at Greenwich Plaza for the annual Greenwich Town Party.
Held various drives at its three owned CT buildings that benefited several local nonprofits including:
- Food drive to benefit The Food Bank of Lower Fairfield County, collecting 480 lbs. of food, a 77% increase from 2024, that can provide a family of 4 food for 2 months.
- Kids Helping Kids gift drive collecting over 200 gifts for students in need to give holiday gifts to their families, and a dresswear drive, collecting over 50 articles of special occasion dresswear to support local students.
- Coat drive, collecting over 50 new and gently used coats to benefit Person to Person.
- Toy drive, collecting more than 100 new toys to support the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots program.
- Book and media drive, collecting over 40 books and 25 DVDs for the Ferguson Library.

Community Support at Ashforth’s Owned & Managed Properties

We encourage volunteerism to nearly 4,500 employees in over 300 companies at our owned and managed buildings by organizing numerous community-oriented events that benefit local nonprofits.

Key Community Partnerships

Stamford Health & Bennett Cancer Center

Ashforth is the founding & presenting sponsor of Stamford Health’s Bennett Cancer Center Hope in Motion Walk, one of Connecticut’s longest-running and largest participatory charitable events. It has raised over $18.5 million over 29 years. In 2025, the event raised $521,000.
Ashforth’s team raised $8,053 for the event in 2025 and over the past 29 years the team raised over $325,000.
In 2024, Ashforth donated marketing services valued at $5,000. Total value of these in-kind services over the past 29 years is $400,000.
Since 1996, Ashforth’s total contribution, including our annual corporate donation, in-kind marketing, and team donation, is $1.5 million.
Our VP and Director of Marketing & Communications has served on committees and is an event advisor for the past 30 years. Ashforth’s Co-Chair of the Board was a past chairman of the hospital and co-chairman of the Stamford Hospital Foundation Board.

Boys & Girls Club of Stamford

Ashforth annually supports various Boys & Girls Club events throughout the year. In 2025, a total of $672,344, was raised from these events.
In addition to financial support totaling $325,000 over 30 years, Ashforth provides in-kind marketing services for the past 15 years valued at $74,750.
Ashforth has been a supporter of the Boys & Girls Club for over 30 years. Our Executive Assistant to Ashforth’s Co-Chair of the Board is a past President of the Board and has been a member of the board for over 25 years.

Impact Fairfield County

Founded in 2015, Impact FFC is a collective giving circle of diverse women, living or working in Fairfield County, CT, dedicated to making impactful change in the community by providing significant and transformational philanthropic investments to local nonprofits. Since the initial grant year 2016, Impact FFC has provided nearly $2.6 million in grant funding, including 18 $100,000 Impact FFC Grants.
In 2025, Impact FFC had over 280 members and provided $454,000 in grant funding. Two $100,000 grants awarded to: EMERGE CT in Bridgeport, CT and The Rowan Center, in Stamford, CT. Impact FFC also awarded four $20,000 unrestricted general operating grants to buildOn (Bridgeport), Person to Person (Darien), Discovery Museum (Bridgeport) and The Child and Family Guidance Center (Bridgeport).
Ashforth has been a corporate partner since 2022. Ashforth sponsored 7 employees to participate on a Grants Review Committee; the SVP of Diversified Investments is a Co-Chair of the Grants Review Committee, the EVP & CFO is a member of the Financial Review Committee, and the VP and Director of Marketing & Communications is a member of the Corporate Partnership Committee.
In addition to financial support, in 2025 Ashforth provided event space, in-kind, for hosted meetings valued at $2,800.

Future 5

Founded in 2009, Future 5 connects motivated, under-resourced students in Stamford to the people and resources they need to achieve their educational, career, and life goals. Future 5 has helped over 950 students.
In 2024-2025, Future 5 worked with 447 Students (230 High Schools, 138 Colleges, and 79 F5 Alumni). 97% of their high school seniors landed with a plan – college, trade school, military. 84% of student members are first generational college goers. 68% of freshmen entering college took on $0 debt. Their College Success Program class of 2021 held a 75% graduation rate in 4 years.
Since 2010, Ashforth’s total contribution, which includes financial and in-kind marketing support, is $282,250.
Ashforth’s VP and Director of Marketing & Communications is a member of Future 5’s Advisory Board and Governance Committee, and a past member of the Board and Strategic Planning Committee. Ashforth’s Co-Chair of the Board was a past Board member.

Fairfield County Business Collaborative for Education Equity

Since 2021, Ashforth has been a corporate member of the Fairfield County Business Collaborative for Education Equity, a partnership with Fairfield County’s Community Foundation that capitalizes on the combined input of the region’s corporate sector to help reduce and eliminate educational disparities among underprivileged pre-K-12+ students, and their families and educators.
In 2025, Ashforth supported the Collaborative’s launch of the Career Pathways Healthcare Pilot, a new cross‑sector initiative designed to connect local youth with in‑demand healthcare careers and strengthen Fairfield County’s future workforce.
The Collaborative has invested $1.1 million in youth-serving nonprofits since it launched in 2020. In 2024, the Collaborative awarded $287,500 in grants to six nonprofits; three received 2-year grants. In 2025, the Collaborative continued its commitment by supporting the second year of grants to these partners:
- Stamford Cradle to Career in partnership with Building One Community
- Today’s Students Tomorrow’s Teachers in partnerships with Norwalk Public Schools
- The Carver in collaboration with Serving All Vessels Equally
Ashforth’s VP and Director of Marketing & Communications is a member of the Collaborative‘s Executive Committee.

City of Stamford Citizen of the Year & JWV Community Scholarships

For 82 years, the City of Stamford has recognized a Stamford resident who has demonstrated exceptional voluntary service and outstanding and unwavering commitment to Stamford.
Since 2005, $750,000 in scholarships has been awarded to 117 Stamford high school seniors at the annual Citizen of the Year event for their outstanding community service to the City of Stamford, and 107 Stamford veterans have been honored by awarding annual scholarships in the name of Stamford veterans who have selflessly served our country and our community. In 2025, five $7,500 scholarships were awarded.
Since 2022, Ashforth’s total contribution, which includes financial and in-kind marketing support is valued at $53,000.
Ashforth’s VP and Director of Marketing & Communications is a member of the JWV Community Scholarships Board and its City of Stamford Citizen of the Year Event Committee.