Sanfords named Leaders in Philanthropy for 2021

Staff Report
The Community Foundation of Acadiana and Hancock Whitney Bank have announced that Joe and Gina Sanford are the 2021 Leaders in Philanthropy Award honorees for St. Mary Parish.
As lifelong residents of St. Mary Parish, they have both remained active in their community. Their basis for giving goes back to both of their families teaching the Christian foundation of giving back to the community to those less fortunate.
“It was my father who inspired me to give back, he was a generous man and I wanted to follow in his path,” Joe Sanford said.
“It was my parents who inspired me to give back because they helped so many throughout their lives,” Gina Sanford said.
The Sanfords share the same values and, after the sale of Joe’s company, they have continued to make generosity a top priority.
“Gina and Joe Sanford are compassionate and helpful; they do what is right and good to benefit people and causes in need of their support,” said Lisa Parsiola, St. Mary Foundation Advisory Board member.
“What’s more, they choose to keep quiet about the ways in which they are generous to their community, rather than seeking attention or recognition for their acts of kindness. Their altruism inspires others to give back with their own time, talents, and treasures.”
Leaders In Philanthropy Awards are presented annually to outstanding individuals, couples, and corporations who have supported nonprofit organizations, churches and schools through charitable giving or philanthropic work.
Individuals and couples are selected from each of the eight parishes of Community Foundation of Acadiana’s primary service area.
CFA welcomes nominations from the general public at www.cfacadiana.org/lip. Nominees need not be donors or have a Fund at CFA. CFA’s Past Board Members consider nominations and submit their recommendations to the CFA Board of Directors for final approval, including those proposed by any Parish Affiliate Advisory Board.
Community Foundation of Acadiana’s core purpose is to build legacies and improve communities by connecting generous people to the causes they care about.
CFA has realized more than $317 million in philanthropic activities since inception in 2000 and currently has assets of more than $187 million. CFA’s donor-directed grant distributions now exceed $165 million. While donors are not limited geographically, CFA’s primary service area includes the parishes of Acadia, Evangeline, Iberia, Lafayette, St. Landry, St. Martin, St. Mary, and Vermilion. CFA is the third largest community foundation in the state and expects to soon be included in the Top 100 U.S. community foundations by assets. These important milestones ensure CFA’s position as one of Louisiana’s premier philanthropic organizations.