Maureen, Megan and Katey Ryan Fund

VCF Founding Board member James E. Ryan started this Fund originally to provide scholarships for girls from Assumption School in Ansonia to attend Sacred Heart Academy in Hamden, where his daughters went to school. The Maureen, Megan & Katey Ryan Fund is now a designated fund that will support the Church of the Assumption in Ansonia, CT in perpetuity.

At 18, Megan Ryan of Ansonia was already serving her ?rst year as a corporator at the Valley United Way. As such, she attended the nonpro?t's 2006 annual meeting and played a role in electing the new board of directors. Her younger sister, Katey, eagerly followed in her sister's footsteps. As far as their dad, Jimmy Ryan is concerned, this is the way it should be.

"We have to pass the torch and get our young people involved," says Ryan, a community leader who serves on the Board of the Valley Community Foundation. "Leadership development is a priority in the Valley."

To help drive the process, Ryan has started at home.

"I wanted to get my family involved in philanthropy, particularly my children, as my wife is already very involved," says Ryan, explaining why he set up the Fund that is named for his wife and daughters. "I think it (philanthropy) is part of our social responsibility and that this Fund will serve as a good example for them to see how it works."

Ryan, who himself has been active in the Valley United Way, the Boys and Girls Club of the lower Naugatuck Valley, the Birmingham Mental Health Center, the Housatonic Council, Boy Scouts of America, and The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven, among others, is excited about the future of philanthropy in the Valley.

"I've become convinced over the last few years that there are many opportunities to increase philanthropy in the Valley," he says. "I believe the Valley Community Foundation is a way to do that, and that it will help our communities."

To make a tax-deductible contribution to this fund, please complete the secure, online credit card form below: