A note from our President

My parents, J. Warren “Mac” and Lois McClure, founded the McClure Foundation as the first supporting organization of the Vermont Community Foundation (VCF) in 1995, following decades of generous philanthropy centered in Vermont.

Mac grew up in Athens, Ohio and served in the US Navy during World War II.  Lois grew up in Burlington. They met in 1952 when Mac joined The Burlington Free Press as Business Manager and married in 1954. My folks set up house in South Burlington and devoted themselves to building the newspaper’s circulation and advertising, and to serving their community as volunteers. In 1971, they sold their equity in the newspaper business and moved to Rochester, New York, where Mac worked as Vice President of Marketing for Gannett Newspapers. It was there that Lois had the opportunity to complete her college degree. Mac worked next as a motivational consultant and the couple began wintering in Florida and spending summers back in Vermont, where they devoted significant energy and resources to serving the state they loved. The growth of their Gannett shares gave them the means to think big, to support Vermont institutions in creative ways and, ultimately, to establish this Foundation.

Mac was known for honing a set of principles that he shared often with family, friends, and business associates; he called these the “Energems.”  These values guided our family and, over time, became part of the Foundation’s identity. Today, they continue to shape the work of our board of directors — an inspiring group of thoughtful Vermonters dedicated to advancing the Foundation’s mission:

• Succeed by helping others succeed. Collaborate with forward-looking organizations and assist them to expand capacity and outreach to best serve Vermont’s emerging generations.
• Have a sense of urgency. Take risks to gain rewards. Don’t be afraid to spend big for Vermont and Vermonters as conditions and opportunities warrant.
• Do something that is different. Contribute to systemic change that benefits Vermonters, including through collaborative efforts between public and private entities. Uphold our relational and trust-based approach to grantmaking.
• Bloom where you’re planted. Remain focused on Vermont and our systemic goals.
• Be a reader to be a leader. Commit to lifelong learning from and alongside Vermont’s students and educators and from national efforts and experts.

We hold dear Lois’s own guiding principles, too: share what you can, keep learning and moving forward—and don’t forget to have fun.

My parents believed in the power of community and cared deeply for Vermont. They saw themselves as stewards of their resources and often spoke publicly about how their wealth was rooted in Vermont and how it should continue to serve Vermonters.

After Mac’s passing in 2004, Lois took up the mantle of leadership, guiding the Foundation’s work until 2015, when health and vision challenges led her to pass that responsibility on to me.

It has been my honor to serve as President of the J. Warren & Lois McClure Foundation. Our focus on helping Vermont’s “next generation” to access education and training pathways leading to the state’s most promising jobs honors my parents’ commitment to enhancing the lives of Vermonters.

I invite you to learn more about the McClure Foundation’s mission and strategies and I encourage you, too, to devote your time, talents, and resources to help make Vermont a better place for all. 

Sincerely,
Barbara McClure Benedict

Mac and Lois were honored to spearhead the restoration efforts of the steamship Ticonderoga at the Shelburne Museum in the mid-1990s.