History

The Social Equity Access Fund is a woman-of-color-founded and -led initiative created on the premises of mutual trust, equitable redistribution of wealth, and facilitated access to financial resources. It was initially created to address the basic needs of individuals, and it has since evolved toward funding 501c3 non-profits and community leaders that are closest to the issues and are better equipped to respond but lack the funding to do so.

The fund was established in 2020 by three women of different religious, ethnic, and racial backgrounds, to get financial support to individuals and nonprofits who needed it most, as quickly and easily as possible – without the typical barriers often found in the traditional philanthropy sector.

Elsa Gomes Bondlow is the current CEO and Co-founder of the Social Equity Access Fund (SEAF). The inception of the fund included, who moved on to found and lead the nonprofit Bridge Forward Fund. SEAF was seeded by a generous visionary philanthropist committed to its mission.

The fund started with the recognition that, despite best intentions, the majority of philanthropic social justice agents (both funders and nonprofit organizations) can only go so far to recognize and understand everyone's needs, rights, and opportunities– specifically in diverse and often traditionally marginalized communities–unless they were in and or from those communities. SEAF is committed to addressing everyday problems in people's lives by offering the 501c3 organizations that serve them liberating, unrestricted grants that will help people live in dignity, not in fear; that will empower them not diminish themselves as experts; and will elevate them, not try to save them.