Investing in Impact: Equitable Foundation

United Way of Greater Charlotte is grateful for its funders in the community. This blog series is dedicated to our generous partners and their commitment to the greater good in Greater Charlotte. 

Corporate and nonprofit partnerships are vital for driving positive change in communities and creating sustainable impact. For nonprofits, corporate partnerships provide more than financial support—they open doors to expertise and long-term relationships that can amplify their impact. Corporations, in turn, benefit from aligning with causes that reflect their values and engage employees in meaningful community involvement. 

For example, our partner Equitable Foundation has committed $500,000 to the expansion of United Neighborhoods–specifically the addition of the Lakeview community. Recent data shows the investment is increasing Lakeview Neighborhood Alliance’s impact, as they provided more than 2,000 services and more than 2,000 hours of contact with residents in 2023, which was a 53.8% increase from the year before.* 

“Our model is to engage residents, provide education and resources to benefit residents, and to empower families to have ownership over their lives. We accomplish this through four program areas: Child and Family Stability, Prevention of Displacement, Economic Mobility, and Civic Awareness and Cultural Responsibility,” LNA Executive Director Jamaal Kinard said, “We offer a wide array of programs and services to Lakeview residents that work toward each of the four program areas above.” 

Equitable Foundation has gone beyond funding to actively participating in nonprofit efforts such as service projects, helping cultivate deeper relationships with United Neighborhoods partners like Lakeview Neighborhood Alliance.  

“At Equitable, we believe that meaningful change is only possible when we work together. Partnering with United Way and Lakeview Neighborhood Alliance allows us to deepen our relationships with Jamaal and other residents, while seeing our contributions come to life, creating positive change in the community,” Head of Social Impact and Equitable Foundation Jarian Kerekes said. 

Equitable Foundation always brings a large volunteer team to Live United Day in Lakeview, an annual day to come together and help Lakeview with a project in their community. Jarian Kerekes and his team at Equitable have also supported Lakeview by talking to elementary and high school students about Black History Month in conjunction with POPs Passion programming, they have hosted some Lakeview residents and families in their suite at Hornets games, and they have volunteered and provided dinner at Lakeview’s Parent Night to connect and spend time with residents in the community. 

By encouraging employees to volunteer, Equitable not only strengthens its relationships and connections to the work being done in the community but also creates a shared sense of purpose and investment in the community. 

The place-based work being done through United Neighborhoods is not something that can be completed overnight, it will take time, and partnerships like these are a key part of this long-term work.  

“Equitable is a community partner that truly understands the importance of trust-based philanthropy. They are willing partners that align their time, talent and resources to the goals of our United Neighborhood communities,” Chief Development Officer Clint Hill said.  

“We are lucky to have partners like Equitable Foundation, who remind us that by working together, we can accomplish far more than we could on our own.”  

*From Lakeview Neighborhood Alliance’s FY23 Annual Report 

Equitable is the brand name of the retirement and protection subsidiaries of Equitable Holdings, Inc., including Equitable Financial Life Insurance Company (Equitable Financial) (NY, NY); Equitable Financial Life Insurance Company of America (Equitable America), an AZ stock company with an administrative office located in Charlotte, NC; and Equitable Distributors, LLC. Equitable Advisors is the brand name of Equitable Advisors, LLC (member FINRA, SIPC) (Equitable Financial Advisors in MI & TN). The obligations of Equitable Financial and Equitable America are backed solely by their claims-paying abilities. Equitable Foundation is the philanthropic arm of Equitable and Equitable Advisors. Equitable ExcellenceSM is a service mark of the Equitable Foundation. GE-7457118.1(12/24)(Exp.12/28)