Evan and Tracy Segal

SOURCE OF WEALTH:  Segal Ventures L.P.

FUNDING AREAS: Social Justice, Human Kindness, Social Entrepreneurship

OVERVIEW: Even Segal and his wife Tracy move their philanthropy through the Evan and Tracy Segal Family Foundation, which supports selected civic and community organizations in Social Justice and Human Kindness.

BACKGROUND: A Pittsburgh native, Evan J. Segal graduated from Carnegie Mellon University with a B.S. in 1982, where he also received his MBA. He was president and owner of Dormont Manufacturing Company, a global leader in gas appliance connectors. In 2006, he became president of Segal Ventures L.P., working as an angel/early seed investor, mentor, and advisor. Segal once served as CFO at the United States Department of Agriculture.

ISSUES:

EVAN AND TRACY SEGAL FAMILY FOUNDATION: The Segal Family Foundation supports innovative approaches to human kindness and social justice. It is driven by the “importance of giving back in the spirit of tikkun olam (humanity's shared responsibility to heal, repair and transform the world).” Segal is the founder of Kiva Pittsburgh. Kiva is a “non-profit organization with a mission to connect people through lending to alleviate poverty.” The couple have steadily supported the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh, where Segal was once on the management committee. Segal also supports his alma mater Carnegie Mellon University, home to the Jerome J. Segal Endowed Graduate Scholarship Fund and the Jerome J. Segal Endowed Undergraduate Scholarship Fund at Carnegie Mellon University, in honor of his father.

The foundation also focuses on JCC Pittsburgh and helps fund Grow Pittsburgh, supporting individual, school and community gardens in the Pittsburgh region with gardening resources, planning ideas, and workshops. The Segal Family Foundation supports the Latino Community Center in Pittsburgh with strategic capacity building.

Segal is strongly involved with Venture For America (VFA), a two-year fellowship program for recent college grads who want to work at a startup and create jobs in American cities. Segal is on the board of advisors of the organizations and founded VFA Pittsburgh.

Other grantees have included ACLU, Jewish Family & Children Services, Save the Children, Sierra Club, Planned Parenthood, NRDC, Southern Poverty Law Center, and Bob Woodruff Foundation, which “helps support post-9/11 impacted veterans, service members, their families and caregivers.” Many of these grants are modest, and spread widely amongst a number of grantees.

LOOKING FORWARD: The foundation recently hired executive director Marla Werner, who the Segal Foundation states will “focus on launching and running the next phase of strategic growth and development for the foundation.”

LINK: Application Page