Spaulding-Paolozzi Foundation pledges $500,000 to Founders Fund

The Charleston-based Spaulding-Paolozzi Foundation approved a $500,000 grant to the International African American Museum’s (IAAM) Founders Fund. The IAAM has less than $1 million to raise to conclude its $75 million campaign.

“We are incredibly grateful to the Spaulding-Paolozzi Foundation. It is so meaningful that a foundation located here in Charleston has contributed in a substantial way as we work diligently to conclude our Founders Fund,” said Michael Boulware Moore, IAAM president and CEO.  The Spaulding-Paolozzi Foundation was founded by Countess Alicia Paolozzi to support efforts concerning the environment, the sustainability of agriculture, issues involving the elderly and issues involving women.

The Foundation took interest in the IAAM in part because of the collection of gardens and ample green space that will memorialize the former site of Gadsden’s Wharf. “The IAAM Memorial Garden will be the newest addition to Charleston’s beloved parks, as the museum grounds will be free and open to the public,” said Nigel Redden, President of the Spaudling-Paolozzi Foundation. “Countess Paolozzi would have been proud to support the creation of this beautiful, communal space that honors what is arguably one of the most relevant historical sites in the South – Gadsden’s Wharf.”

This $500,000 grant is the second that Spaulding-Paolozzi has awarded to the IAAM. The first grant, also in the amount of $500,000, gave the museum an important early boost in 2015, when fundraising for the Founders Fund was just beginning in earnest. These contributions will be recognized in the West Plaza, a sprawling, shaded, open-air space directly beneath the museum. The West Plaza will be used for programming, which may include a variety of artistic performances, including music and dance, and may also be used to offer educational experiences to students of all ages.

“I greatly admired the late Countess Paolozzi, and I remain so grateful for all she did for our community and the Spoleto Festival USA,” said Joseph P. Riley, Jr., former Charleston mayor and IAAM board member. “I believe she would have been proud to support the IAAM, and we are certainly honored to have a formal association with the foundation that continues to do great work in her name.

About the IAAM

Nearly half of all enslaved Africans forced to America through the Transatlantic Slave Trade arrived in Charleston, and the vast majority disembarked at Gadsden’s Wharf, the future home of the International African American Museum (IAAM) and one of the most significant and sacred sites of the African American experience in the Western hemisphere. The IAAM, a museum, memorial and site of conscience, will present unvarnished history and culture, commemorate and celebrate the foundational role that Africans and their descendants played in the making of America, and highlight their diasporic connections around the world. It will include immersive, interactive exhibits engaging to all ages and feature the Center for Family History, a leading genealogy archive that will help visitors identify their individual threads in the complex tapestry of history