W.K. Kellogg Foundation's Mission-Driven Bond Portfolio Invests Over $10 Million to Finance Programs that Improve the Lives of Vulnerable Children and Families

FT. LAUDERDALE, Fla., July 26, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- On behalf of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation's mission-driven investment portfolio, Community Capital Management today announced it has invested over $10 million in vital community development initiatives. This includes its most recent investment, a Build America Bond financing the University of New Mexico's Sandoval Regional Medical Center which will be a new 200,000 square foot, 68 public bed, not-for-profit, state-of-the-art community teaching hospital. Construction of the new hospital will provide much needed access to health care for the residents of Sandoval County and surrounding areas that are currently underserved in health care services.

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The community teaching hospital will serve as a training ground for medical professionals, including those in nursing studies at the nearby University of New Mexico West and Central New Mexico Community College (CNM) campuses. In fact, students who graduate from CNM with a two-year degree gain automatic acceptance into the University.  This is particularly important for the county's Native American residents who look to a career in medical services.

In 2007, the Foundation earmarked $75 million of its total investment portfolio toward mission-driven investing in the United States. The portfolio strategically aligns its investments to advance the Foundation's mission of supporting children, families and communities as they strengthen and create conditions that propel vulnerable children to achieve success as individuals and as contributors to the larger community and society. The Foundation concentrates the majority of its place-based work in three priority states in the country: Michigan, Mississippi and New Mexico.

In 2009, the Foundation engaged Community Capital Management to create a portfolio of high credit quality, fixed income securities that would finance initiatives to further its mission in its targeted geographies. Other securities purchased to date on behalf of the Foundation finance mission-driven initiatives that support education, literacy, healthy foods and communities, sustainability, and affordable housing. For example, one Small Business Administration loan finances a restaurant in Milwaukee that uses eggs and milk from local farms employing organic farming techniques to ensure that the food produced is wholesome, nutritious and without any added antibiotics and synthetic chemicals.

"Just as the Foundation awards grants to advance its mission of helping vulnerable children, our mission-driven investing portfolio uses investments to reinforce that same goal," said Tony Berkley, director of mission-driven investments at the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. "Our mission-driven investments are rigorously screened for their financial and social impact to ensure they meet our mission while earning a competitive financial return."

"As a leader in the mission-driven investing space, the W.K. Kellogg Foundation is laying the groundwork for foundations of all sizes to take part in this critical work by dedicating not only their grant dollars but also their endowments toward mission-driven causes," said Barbara VanScoy, senior portfolio manager at Community Capital Management. "Projects in the Foundation's portfolio, like the New Mexico Sandoval Regional Medical Center, are critical in helping to improve opportunities for children, families and communities."

About Community Capital Management

Community Capital Management, Inc. is a Fort Lauderdale-based SEC-registered investment advisor that manages fixed income, impact investing portfolio.  The firm was founded in 1998 by Barbara VanScoy and Todd Cohen and its primary goal is to provide above-average, risk-adjusted returns while providing added diversification and simultaneously having a positive impact on the community and the environment. Community Capital Management manages over $1 billion in assets and offers investors its investment strategy via a separate account or a mutual fund.  For additional information, please contact Jamie Horwitz at 877.272.1977 or visit www.ccmfixedincome.com.

Community Capital Management, Inc. is a Florida-based investment adviser registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940. Investing involves risk, including possible loss of principal. Bond and bond funds are subject to interest rate risk and will decline in value as interest rates rise. Current and future holdings are subject to risk. The securities identified and described are current holdings and are for illustrative purposes and their selection was based upon non-performance criteria, such as the security's social and/or environmental attributes. The securities identified and described do not represent all of the securities purchased, sold or recommended for client accounts. The reader should not assume that an investment in the security identified was or will be profitable. The information provided herein represents the views and opinions of the individual(s) interviewed and are not intended to be a forecast of future events, a guarantee of future results or investment advice.

About the W.K. Kellogg Foundation

Established in 1930, the W.K. Kellogg Foundation supports children, families and communities as they strengthen and create conditions that propel vulnerable children to achieve success as individuals and as contributors to the larger community and society. Grants are concentrated in the United States, southern Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean. The Foundation's mission-driven investing program is designed to help maximize the Foundation's efforts to realize its mission. The approach goes beyond traditional grantmaking efforts to invest endowment dollars in enterprises that both realize market rates of return and improve the lives of vulnerable children. For further information, please visit the Foundation's website at www.wkkf.org and its mission-driven investing website at http://mdi.wkkf.org.

SOURCE Community Capital Management