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Founders Fund Investment Strategy

By Lea Fitzpatrick

In the spring of 2024, as the Women’s Impact Fund (WIF) celebrated its 20th Anniversary, we proudly launched the Founders Fund, securing the future of our mission and honoring the vision of our founders, Mary Lou Babb and Claire Tate. The Babb family’s generous $100,000 initial gift allowed us to launch the Fund. Following an additional gift from founder Claire Tate and other founding members, the Fund held $158,000, a powerful tribute to the 158 women who joined WIF in its first year. “The establishment of the Founders Fund is a celebration of what we’ve built together over the last two decades and the important role that every member of Women’s Impact Fund has played. It ensures that the collective power of our membership continues to positively impact our community for years to come,” shares Patricia Massey Hoke, Executive Director of WIF.

Following the announcement of the Fund at WIF’s spring membership meeting, a dedicated committee of WIF members bringing expertise in financial planning, nonprofit operations, and governance worked together to select Foundation For The Carolinas as our endowment management partner. They also created WIF’s first Investment Policy Statement, ensuring the Fund’s financial health and providing clear guidance for the Board of Directors around the Fund’s purpose to advance the strategic priorities of the organization and increase women’s leadership in philanthropy. 

While the ultimate vision is to grow the Fund to $1 million in value, it is structured as a quasi-endowment, which allows for the expenditure of both principal and income. This provides the Board the flexibility to support immediate needs impacting WIF’s long-term success while building a sustainable future.

With the Founders Fund now established, WIF is positioned to continue its work of empowering women and strengthening communities for decades to come. Thanks to the generosity of our founding members, this Fund will be a lasting legacy—a testament to the collective impact that happens when women unite with purpose.

If you would like to make a gift to the Founders Fund, you can do so at any time by visiting our website.

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Janet LaBar

Executive Director​
jlabar@womensimpactfund.org

With more than 25 years of experience, Janet has a proven track record of leading organizations and teams in developing strategies that foster thriving communities. Her career is dedicated to the well-being of the places she serves, and the people and businesses within them, positioning her as a trusted sounding board, critical thinker, and purposeful protagonist across corporate, government, education, entrepreneurial, and civic spheres.
Janet joined Women’s Impact Fund in June 2025 to guide one of Charlotte’s most respected, women-led philanthropic organizations into its next phase of growth and impact. In partnership with the Women’s Impact Fund team, Board, Advisors, members, volunteers, and key community partners, she will continue strengthening communities by maximizing women’s leadership in philanthropy through collective giving, education, and engagement.
Inspired by her family, teams who dare greatly, and people and communities striving to be their best selves, Janet’s impactful career includes leadership roles as President and CEO of Charlotte Regional Business Alliance, President and CEO of Greater Portland Inc, and Chief Performance Officer of Greater Phoenix Economic Council. As a first-generation Filipino American, her lived experience deeply informs her professional drive to create equitable economic growth and opportunity in the metro areas she’s served.
She holds a BA in Communication Arts from the University of West Florida and an MBA in Marketing from the University of Phoenix. Janet and her husband James are proud parents to an older daughter, and a daughter and son who are twins.