Contributed

Hugh Bingham has received the Lewis R. Holding Philanthropic Leadership Award for 2012, according to James W. Narron, chairman of the board of directors of the North Carolina Community Foundation (NCCF).

Bingham was honored at a recent NCCF's board meeting in Raleigh for his instrumental leadership as a member of the board of advisers of the Moore County Community Foundation, an affiliate of NCCF, a news release said.

Carmen Holding Ames presented the award to Bingham at the board meeting. The award was established to honor her late father, Lewis R. Holding, who founded NCCF in 1988. The leadership award is presented by the NCCF statewide board to an affiliate foundation president or board member who has demonstrated exceptional leadership resulting in outstanding growth for the affiliate.

Bingham has been a banker for 20 years, spending the last eight with First Bank, where he is regional manager and senior vice president. He joined the Moore County Community Foundation in 2007 and became president of the board in 2009, when he established the goal to double the affiliate's community grant making fund, which was accomplished a year later.

He has been instrumental in bringing new endowments to the affiliate and increasing gifts. He also has worked successfully to raise the profile of the affiliate in the community, Narron said when presenting the award, the release said.

The Moore County Community Foundation was established in 1993 and last year awarded $80,000 from its local grantmaking fund to the community.

"Moore County and the Sandhills region certainly have benefited from Mr. Bingham's leadership," said Jennifer Tolle Whiteside, CEO and president of NCCF. "His leadership of the Moore affiliate over the years has encouraged collaboration among funders and nonprofits, which is a model we strive for in all of the communities we serve."

NCCF is the single statewide community foundation serving North Carolina and has made nearly $68 million in grants since its inception in 1988, the release said. With more than $156 million in assets, the NCCF sustains 1,000 plus funds and endowments established to provide long-term support of a broad range of community needs, nonprofit organizations, institutions and scholarships.

The foundation partners with 60 affiliate foundations to provide local resource allocation and community assistance in 67 counties across the state. An important component of the NCCF's mission is to ensure that rural philanthropy has a voice at local, regional and national levels.

Anyone needing more information can visit nccommunityfoundation.org.