Some stories begin not with abundance, but with perseverance – quiet determination, hard work and a belief that better days are possible.
Sandy and Connie Wolfinger embody this journey, and thanks to their philanthropic contributions to their community, the Cattaraugus Region Community Foundation will honor them as the 2026 Friends of the Foundation at CRCF’s annual Friends of the Foundation Luncheon in July.
CRCF’s Friends of the Foundation award is the organization’s most prestigious. It honors a person or persons who have established a fund or funds there and given generously and consistently over the years; an individual who has donated generously to existing funds; and/or someone who continues the Foundation’s mission through giving and volunteerism.
With a successful career in forestry and a lifetime of community-focused giving, the Wolfingers have built a legacy defined by generosity. Their commitment deepened with the establishment of the Wolfinger Family Donor Advised Fund and the Connie and Sandy Wolfinger Fund at CRCF – funds that allow the couple to support the causes and communities they care about most, both locally and beyond.
Sandy’s path to philanthropy is shaped by personal experiences and resilience. Born and raised in Belvidere, New Jersey to loving parents in a family of six, Sandy remembered “having all the necessities but few of the luxuries.”
Sandy attended the rural Penn State Mont Alto campus in 1961 and 1962, with an enrollment of 100 men, no girls, no cars and compulsory ROTC. The campus was established in 1903 as one of the first forestry academies in America.
Sandy completed his Bachelor of Science degree in Forest Management after three years at Penn State Main Campus in State College, PA. Sandy would go on to become the first in his family to graduate from college.
In honor of the support he received, he started his philanthropic actions at Mont Alto in 1994 by establishing the first lifetime endowment at the school in his parent’s name. In later years, he also endowed a fund for scholarships and program grants at Penn State’s main campus.
Upon graduating, Sandy began what would become a long and successful career in forest management and forestry consulting. He began his professional career working for a consulting firm as a surveyor and forestry consultant. He was recruited by Hammermill Paper Company as a field forester and was later promoted to District Forester where he was in charge of more than 54,000 forest acres in Pennsylvania and New York.
After a decade working for Hammermill, he started working for Mallery Lumber Company of Emporium, PA, a subsidiary of Southeast Forest Industries, to oversee their log and timber resource procurement. In time, he was promoted to vice president.
He retired from Southwest Industries and combined his timber management and procurement knowledge and experience into a forestry consulting business named Northern Forests LLC. This new company acquired, managed and developed forest resources where he was an owner. The company has operated for over 35 years and is now managed by Sandy, Connie and Sandy’s son, Shawn Wolfinger.
Connie, a native of Humphrey, New York, and an Ellicottville Central School graduate, met Sandy during a long career as a real estate broker, specializing in land sales, where she had developed a niche market. Following their marriage and moving from the Ellicottville area, she formed her own real estate company, Field & Stream Real Estate, which incorporated well with the timber and land consulting business.
Sandy and Connie have been married for 29 years and have a blended family of 3 children, 7 grandchildren and a great grandchild. They have developed a great personal and business relationship – a speaker at a recent dinner honoring them introduced them as “Peanut Butter and Jelly.”
Philanthropy has become a natural extension of the Wolfingers’ values and life experiences.
Since they established their namesake funds at CRCF in 2019, they have donated over $800,000 to the Foundation, resulting in outright grants of over $200,000 and endowments to continue their philanthropic legacy in perpetuity.
Through the Wolfinger Family Donor Advised Fund and the Connie and Sandy Wolfinger Fund, the couple makes annual grants to organizations that reflect their passions and priorities. Their giving has supported HomeCare & Hospice, Olean General Hospital, special beautification projects in the Village of Cuba, veterans and active military and many other community initiatives. 
Education remains a cornerstone of the Wolfingers’ philanthropic journey. Annual program grants made to school districts they are involved with – plus Belvidere, New Jersey, where Sandy and his siblings graduated. The grants support specific projects through an application process at CRCF, where the requests are reviewed by the Foundation and the Wolfingers.
Each of the grants benefit a multitude of students. The Wolfingers thought that grants that benefitted whole classes or groups of students could be more beneficial than a scholarship grant to a single student.
Similar project grants funds have been endowed by Sandy and Connie at Penn State Mont Alto and Penn State University Park campus to support educational opportunities at each campus. Those program grant funds have received extensive grant support from the Wolfinger Family Fund over the years.
“Sandy and Connie represent everything the Friends of the Foundation designation stands for,” said the CRCF Board President Wendy Brand. “Their giving is thoughtful, deeply personal and rooted in gratitude for the communities that shaped their lives. They give with intention, and the impact of that generosity is felt across our region and beyond.”
In 2026, Sandy and Connie were inducted into the Mount Nittany Society for their contributions to the Penn State University campus. At the celebration later this year, they will be recognized for their enduring support of the university, exceeding $250,000.
Through their generosity, humility and belief in giving back, Sandy and Connie Wolfinger exemplify the values at the heart of the Cattaraugus Region Community Foundation. As CRCF’s 2026 Friends of the Foundation, their story is a reminder that lasting impact often begins with gratitude - and grows through a lifetime of giving.
The Friends of the Foundation Luncheon will be held at St. Bonaventure University’s Doyle Hall, where 2026 CRCF scholarship recipients will be honored, as well.
The Cattaraugus Region Community Foundation is the area’s supportive, responsive and trusted community foundation. Established in 1994, CRCF is growing good by connecting donors to the causes they care about most in the region. Grants from the foundation support many areas, including education, scholarships, health care, the arts, community development, human service, and youth development. To learn more, call (716) 301-CRCF (2723), email [email protected], or visit online at www.cattfoundation.org. CRCF is also on Facebook (facebook.com/cattfoundation) and Twitter (@CattFoundation).
