Community Foundation of North Carolina East
Living Well & Doing Good
Born and raised in Eastern North Carolina and now residing on the coast of Wilmington, Melissa Quinn Spain has greatly enjoyed her southern roots and lifestyle. She returned home after earning her undergraduate degree in communications & marketing from Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia.
It was college that sparked her passion for charitable giving and philanthropic work as she completed internships with Virginia Baptist Hospital & Children’s Miracle Network, The Ronald McDonald House of Eastern North Carolina, Pitt County Memorial Hospital, and Make a Wish Foundation of Eastern North Carolina.
Melissa has served as CEO of the Community Foundation of North Carolina East (CFNC East) since its inception 25 years ago in her hometown of Greenville. Initially called The Greater Greenville Community Foundation, the name was changed nine years ago to better reflect the expanded market and eastern North Carolina region it serves.
“We’re headquartered in Greenville, and we have an additional office in Wilmington,” notes Melissa. “Our clients, foundation donors, and philanthropic partners are spread throughout many counties and cities east of Raleigh. We’re proud that we’ve stayed true to our mission of focusing on the needs of – and creating opportunities for – the Eastern North Carolina region.”
Melissa works closely with donor families and oversees Foundation assets totaling more than $70 million by way of estate and other endowments. “In our 25-year history, we have grown to nearly 100 various charitable funds. We distribute between $2 and $3 million dollars annually in grants and donations to hundreds of charities, philanthropic organizations, colleges, and universities,” notes Melissa.
Melissa Quinn Spain has served as CEO of the Community Foundation of North Carolina East since it began 25 years ago. She is passionate about the Foundation’s work that reaches across many areas of North Carolina.
The TowneBank boardroom in the Greenville office is a great meeting place for the Community Foundation of NC East. Greg Steele, TowneBank Greenville president (4th from left) and Glenn Marsh, TowneBank senior vice president and Greenville branch manager (far right) welcome Melissa Spain, CFNC East CEO (standing).
CFNC East partners with key business leaders to serve as advocates for nonprofits supporting initiatives that positively impact North Carolina veterans, at-risk youth, women and girls, children suffering from life-threatening illnesses, people experiencing homelessness and food insecurity, as well as those in danger of family violence or human trafficking.
“We are avid supporters of North Carolina and Eastern North Carolina cancer services, The American Cancer Society, and The Salvation Army,” explains Melissa. “As a community foundation, we are proactive with our disaster relief fund. In times of natural disaster, we are one of the first to work with organizations like Samaritan’s Purse and The American Red Cross to be on the ground and ready to get financial resources to families suffering loss.”
The Foundation has greatly enjoyed its banking relationship with TowneBank as they began a very successful partnership in 2024, though Melissa had established relationships with Towne leaders long before that. “I have known Glenn Marsh, senior vice president and Greenville branch manager, and Greg Steele, president of Greenville, for years when they were with other organizations before TowneBank,” explains Melissa.
“We really like what TowneBank brings to the table because, as a foundation, we are very relationship-based. We are not just a fiduciary that sends checks to charities. We build long-term relationships with our clients and pride ourselves on maintaining those relationships for generations. TowneBank is also very community and relationship-based and they do an exceptional job through the TowneBank Foundation. We have formed a wonderful partnership with Towne, and we’ve also established a great relationship with Towne Wealth Management based out of Raleigh. We also work with Towne Insurance, so it’s a total partnership.”
Melissa says there is a common misconception among the public that you have to have millions of dollars to establish funds through a foundation. “One of the most important things we like people to understand is that anyone can be a philanthropist— anyone with charitable intent can make a difference in the communities where they live, work, and raise their families There are opportunities for philanthropic work at all levels when working through a community foundation like ours,” she explains.
In fact, a named fund may be established for as little as $10,000, and CFNC East staff work closely with donors to make sure their gift goes back to the region or organization of their choice. “Our endowment funds range in size from $10,000 to $4 million,” Melissa says, “with many of those funds being legacy funds for perpetuity.”
“Our motto ‘living well and doing good’ came out of COVID,” Melissa explains in closing. “It is a wonderful reflection of what we accomplish as a foundation and what we enable our donor families to do through their charitable funds with us, ultimately allowing us to live our mission – Promoting, Enabling, and Celebrating Philanthropy in Eastern North Carolina, For Good Forever.”
For more information, visit CFNCEast.org.
One organization that CFNC East supports is Samaritan’s Purse, with a mission to help families struggling with hunger and poverty across the world.
Insights & Perspectives
Insurance and investment products offered are Not bank deposits or obligations, Not FDIC-Insured, Not insured by any government agency, Not guaranteed by TowneBank, and may go down in value.