Keith Swayne is a well-known business leader and philanthropist. He served as CEO of Case Swayne Co. for 22 years, and after its sale to BestFoods, as CEO of its successor International Food Solutions. Since retiring in 2000, Keith has remained active on a variety of corporate and nonprofit boards.
Keith Swayne and his late wife, Judy Swayne, founder of the Orange County Community Foundation
Keith is co-founder of the Keith and Judy Swayne Family Foundation, which now resides at the Orange County Community Foundation and the Hawaii Community Foundation in Honolulu, where his daughter, Anne Swayne Keir resides. Keith and Anne guide the foundation, which includes a namesake of his late wife of 50 years and strive to influence positive outcomes by investing in efforts that strengthen families and communities in Orange County and Hawaii.
Believing that Orange County’s future depends on all residents having the opportunity to thrive, Keith decided on a bold approach: launch the Orange County Social Justice Fund (OCSJF) at the Orange County Community Foundation. Keith Swayne seeded the Fund as a permanent endowment at OCCF, with the goal of building the corpus to $10 million as an enduring source of support for the Orange County community. An initial round of grants totaling $400,000 was awarded to 25 local nonprofits who aligned with the Fund’s focus and priorities.
“If we are going to be a strong thriving county, then we have to be a county that accepts everyone, and sees diversity as a strength, not a weakness and a challenge,” said Swayne. “My hope is that other funders will join us and help call attention to the social justice issues that need to be addressed in Orange County.”
The Orange County Social Justice Fund was established with a vision that all residents should have full access to economic, political and social rights and opportunities regardless of race, ethnicity, religion, age, gender, sexual orientation, disability, or other characteristics. Fundamental to the Fund’s vision are three key values: 1) Diversity is an asset 2) Moving toward unity, and 3) Creating local impact. The Orange County Social Justice Fund will support its grantees’ direct services, coalition building, and policy advocacy.
