In 1978, The New York Community Trust, one of the Nation's largest community foundations, established a Long Island division to provide Nassau and Suffolk County residents with an economical alternative to a private foundation or a commercial gift fund. Like the other 750 community foundations around the country, the LICF offers a dual service: for donors, an efficient and hassle-free way of giving; and for the region, a philanthropic institution to support and assist the nonprofit community.