IAAM receives $250,000 programming grant from TD Bank

Listen to this article

The International African American Museum has received a $250,000 grant from TD Bank to sponsor onsite and online programming.

The TD Bank Program Series will feature nine major community events and programs from 2022 to 2024 aimed at multi-generational audiences. It will feature noted national speakers, panels and dialogues centered around history, art, culture and social justice, along with Lowcountry arts and foodways events.

“Our ability to convene community through programs and dialogue is critical to activating the museum’s mission – and I’m delighted that this second grant from TD Bank makes this possible in a significant way,” Tonya Matthews, president and CEO of the museum, said in a news release. “With this support, we can expand our programs, reaching more audiences near and far. I’m particularly excited about our plans to create programs that showcase and engage authentic African American cultural arts and storytelling here in Charleston, right alongside national figures and pop culture touch points.”

The museum is designing and curating events to engage historically excluded and socially and economically vulnerable communities and provide the museum with opportunities to partner with other organizations to create meaningful programming, according to the release.

“We are so proud to be able to continue to support the work of the International African American Museum and help increase access to their incredible exhibits and programing, particularly for individuals from diverse and vulnerable communities,” said Shelley Sylva, head of U.S. corporate citizenship at TD Bank. “The TD Bank Program Series will help to elevate the amazing works and untold stories of artists and individuals and drive important conversations around social justice, diversity, and more.”

The donation is part of the TD Ready Commitment, the bank’s global corporate citizenship platform targeting $750 million in community investments that fall under one of its four key categories: Financial Security, Vibrant Planet, Connected Communities, and Better Health.

“The support builds on our long-standing commitment to the International African American Museum,” Hugh Allen, regional president for the Mid-South Metro at TD Bank, said. “We are thrilled to continue supporting their critical work and helping to bring their incredible programing to even more people across the country and around the world.”

The most recent investment builds on a previous $250,000 donation made in 2016 from the TD Charitable Foundation, the charitable giving arm of TD Bank, to support the museum’s capital campaign.

The museum is set to open in early 2023 at the site of Gadsden’s Wharf in downtown Charleston, where many slaves disembarked from Africa. Its focus will be the cultural, social and economic impact of slavery in the Americas and the diverse journeys and achievements of slaves and their descendants.