Our History

The Adam Foundation, Inc. grew out of a private gathering of friends drawn together to raise emergency assistance funds for the Forsyth County AIDS Task Force in 1990. That first gathering at Tanglewood's Barn became known as The Adam Festival. The Adam Festival Committee, a self-regenerating committee of volunteers from within the lesbian/gay community, has continued to organize the Festival annually since that first party.
 

The members of the 1994 Adam Festival Committee incorporated the Adam Foundation, Inc. as a nonprofit organization. Their goal was to provide an on-going funding resource within the gay and lesbian community, building on the success of the Adam Festival -- not only for HIV/AIDS services and education but also for lesbian and gay issues and concerns. Responsibility and accountability to donors and supporters of the Adam Festival were also concerns of the incorporators and the new Board of Directors.
 

That same year, the Adam Foundation, Inc. Endowment Fund was established through the generosity of a small group of contributors. The endowment continues to grow with the hope of providing permanent annual support for projects within the funding guidelines of the Foundation.
 

The summer of 1998 saw the first direct mail solicitation for the Endowment. This campaign allowed the fund to grow by $4,000 so that the fund now has almost $25,000 invested to grow for the future.
 

The Adam Foundation, as a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization, raises money in the community and distributes those funds to local agencies in accordance with its mission statement. Types of funds received include proceeds from special events, individual contributions, planned gifts, and memorials.
 

The Adam Festival - held each fall - remains the major funding source for the foundation's grants.