Dear Austin Bar Members:
As we celebrate the Thanksgiving season, we want to thank you for your continued support of the Austin Bar Foundation. As you make your year-end charitable donations, we ask that you consider one or more of the following programs:
Preservation of Hilgers House – The Foundation bought this beautiful home in 2019. It was built in 1899, and there is extensive upkeep in maintaining our headquarters. Potential projects for 2025 include upgrading the heating and air system, redoing the hardwood floors, refinishing some of the trim, and repainting the outside classic revival pillars.
Equity Summit – This annual CLE event is put on by the Austin Bar’s DEI Committee and focuses on making the Austin legal profession a more equitable and inclusive community. Funds raised for this event are used to rent event space, provide breakfast and lunch to attendees, produce signage and handouts, and attract speakers.
Veterans Legal Assistance Program – VLAP hosts monthly in-person legal advice clinics where volunteer attorneys counsel veterans on a range of legal issues, such as contract disputes, landlord/tenant disputes, custody disputes, divorce, alimony, and child support issues. Funds raised for this cause are used to pay for technology and software to ensure efficiency.
Austin Bar Foundation Grants – Every year, the foundation awards grants to worthy community organizations and causes offering legal-related services to the public. 2024 recipients include Austin Community Radio to host a Jury Duty Community Forum, Catholic Charities of Central Texas to expand legal aid to immigrants with Department of Justice-accredited representatives, and the Seedling Foundation to provide mentoring to kids who have an incarcerated parent.
Justice Mack Kidd Fund – This fund provides grants to attorneys struggling with mental health and/or substance abuse issues to seek treatment.
Adoption Day – This project puts on the annual Austin Adoption Day event at the Travis County Civil & Family Courts Facility, where the adoption of kids in foster care is finalized. Funds raised allow us to decorate the courthouse and ensure the day is as memorable as possible for the families.
CanLaw Clinic – This project provides free estate-planning services to patients with stage-IV cancer and their families. Funds raised for this project are used to pay for meeting space, signage, printing, and technology.
Denise Hyde Scholarship – This fund provides grants to individuals who are aging out of the foster-care system. Recipients can use these funds to pay for school supplies, take GED/SAT/ACT tests, apply for college, and other expenses they may have.
LGBTQ+ Scholarship – This fund provides stipends to LGBTQ+ law students and advocates in Texas. The purpose of this fund is to promote education on LGBTQ+ issues, raise the profile and increase acceptance of LGBTQ+ individuals in the legal community, and to promote LGBTQ+ equality.
The Austin Bar Foundation is a 501(C)(3) not-for-profit organization. Donations to the Austin Bar Foundation are tax-deductible.
Donations via check should be made out to the Austin Bar Foundation and sent to 712 W. 16th Street, Austin, TX 78701.
You can (if you desire) indicate specific programs to support by circling them on this page and returning it with the check.
Online donations can be made at austinbar.org/donate.
What you get for your contributions
• All donors of $100 or more will be recognized on the Austin Bar website.
• All donors of $250 or more will be recognized in the weekly Bar Code e-newsletter.
• All donors of $500 or more will be recognized in Austin Lawyer.
• All donors of $1,000 or more will be recognized in individualized social media posts.