While LISC has been on the national scene since 1979, LISC Jacksonville did not open its doors until 1999. Community leaders affiliated with such groups as the Jaguars Foundation, the Jessie Ball DuPont Fund and the Community Foundation were familiar with LISC's work in other communities. In a meeting with then Jacksonville Mayor John Delaney in 1998, the group received encouragement to bring LISC to Jacksonville.
With Joni Foster at the helm, the organization set about evaluating the opportunities for community building and building grassroots support for the concept.
The city of Jacksonville joined in the support in 2004 with a pledged grant of $1.5 million for capacity building support to CDCs, a fund managed and matched by LISC Jacksonville.
Since its formation, LISC Jacksonville has been able to make millions in dollars of grants, loans and scholarships while leveraging growth equal to that amount. It has also fueled the development of community development corporations, the grassroots organizations that work to create a better quality of life in Jacksonville 's neighborhoods.
