In 1926, the Kenosha Foundation was established by a group of community-minded citizens, some of which included Charles C. Brown, H. E. Barden, W. H. Alford, and A. H. Lance, to provide charitable-minded individuals and organizations the opportunity to create permanent endowment funds that were tax efficient and whose proceeds benefit the community. They wanted the income earned from the endowment funds to be used for grants to nonprofit organizations that were in a position to address a wide variety of social, cultural, educational, and other charitable needs throughout the city.

In the 1950s, the Kenosha Foundation changed to the Greater Kenosha Area Foundation. The change was made to emphasize that the organization was there to assist and support all of Kenosha County. The Greater Kenosha Area Foundation gradually became part of a family of over 300 community foundations in the US. In the 1990s, we changed our name to the Kenosha Community Foundation.

Our mission has stayed the same throughout the years, and our belief in supporting the Kenosha community remains stronger than ever.