Our Vision Statement
Making a Difference
- One community at a time,
- One family at a time,
- One child at a time.
Don't Miss Out
Pictures From Our Last Event
Relive the moments from our latest community gathering.
2025 Scholarship Recipients
Geralyn Alavarez
Graduate of University Heights Secondary School, enrolling at CCNY as a Macaulay Honors student. Honor roll throughout high school with a 96.13% GPA, plus a yearlong internship with America on Tech.
Vanesta Silcott Francis
Graduate of Yonkers High School, enrolling at SUNY Westchester Community College. A natural leader who supported classmates academically while captaining her sports teams.
Karen Abreu
Graduate of Alexander Hamilton High School, headed to St. John's University Honors Program for Psychology. Earned over $175,000 in scholarships with a 97.97% GPA, and founded a sewing club that repurposes clothing for those in need.
Our Mission
Our purpose is to build and lift up communities and families through sports, recreation, and educational empowerment — providing support, guidance and mentoring to youth and families in lower-income neighborhoods.
The Gardiner Foundation is a 501(c)(3)
How It Started
In 2006, our founder, Dexter Gardiner, lost six family members in a single car accident on the Bronx River Parkway. His mother and youngest sister also died that year. From that pain, the Gardiner Foundation was formed in his family's honor — to help other families struck by tragedy manage grief and move forward.
What We Do
Recognizing that other families face sudden, tragic loss too, the Gardiner Foundation, a 501(c)(3), offers a range of support — from burial assistance and spiritual guidance to computers, school supplies, and college scholarships.
How We Give Back
Memorial & Bereavement Assistance
One year after its founding, the Gardiner Foundation started raising funds for interment services to benefit those who lack sufficient funds for a memorial service and burial. The first beneficiary was a single mother who lost five of her children in a car accident who also received professional counseling services during and after the crisis.
Year-Round Basketball Tournaments
Extending far beyond the basketball court, our recreational trips are a basis for pre-teen and teenage youth to learn and build the key life skills and importance of relationship-building, sportsmanship, academics and community service.
Gardiner Foundation Scholarships
Since 2009, The Gardiner Foundation has provided $1,500 scholarship to each student entering their first year in college or preparatory school who have earned the honor after having written an essay and received a recommendation from a Guidance Counselor, Dean or Principal.
Peer Mentoring Programs
"Tru Talk" is a peer mentorship program for youth and young adults to discuss the peer pressures of life and is an extension of the Gardiner Foundation motto, “We Are Our Brother’s Keeper.”
Additional Services
Our Premier Sponsor
Other Sponsors
Check Us Out on YouTube
For all footage from our annual events.