Frank Cumberbatch: Leading the Way at Bader Philanthropies

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Photo by Tom Jenz

Frank Cumberbatch

Frank Cumberbatch

Frank Cumberbatch is vice president for engagement at Bader Philanthropies. By the arc of his life, Cumberbatch also symbolizes an inspiring American story. He was born on the Caribbean island of Trinidad, the first of seven children. His father was a laborer in public works, and his mother worked in a garment factory. The family lived in poverty. But he loved to read, which opened up his world. Cumberbatch said, “I could not get enough from books and learning. I can actually crawl into a book and lose myself.” 

This was the late ‘60s and early ‘70s. Cumberbatch went to a low-end Trinidad high school and did well academically. He was also an athlete, dedicated to running track. American colleges came calling, and he earned an academic scholarship to the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh. He went on to become a college track star, holding the school record in the 400 meter dash for 38 years.

We met at the striking Bader Philanthropies building, an architectural oasis located on the north end of ML King Drive in the Harambee neighborhood. Surrounded by flowers and lovely landscaping, the structure shines with hope. Cumberbatch told me, “We want the neighborhood residents to believe we all deserve beauty.” He is tall and fit and immediately engaging through a strong but gentle presence. Through a delightful Caribbean island accent, he personalizes charm.

What was the college experience like for you in the early 1980s? UW-Oshkosh was predominately white, and you were in a foreign country, and the weather could be severe and cold.

I had mixed feelings, but also a kind of excitement. Every day was about learning. I had friends from farms and friends from urban cities, from Minnesota and from Milwaukee. Every day was some new story. I made all kinds of friends. I take people as they are, I am open minded. I’m comfortable with anybody, with any kind of people, regardless of race or culture.  

You graduated in 1984 with a business administration degree. After college you came to Milwaukee. How did you end up here?

I got a job with Waukesha County. I was one of five employees hired to computerize the Criminal Justice System, converting documents from paper storage to computer storage. Computers were young then. The papers and documents took up rooms and rooms of court files. I did that job for 15 years, rode with the cops, appeared at court trials, gathered information.

But as I recall, you later wanted to get into the business world.

Correct. In the year 2000, I changed jobs, and was hired by the first wireless phone company in Milwaukee, Industar. I did Information Technology work for three years at Industar. In 2003, when John Norquist resigned as Milwaukee mayor, I decided to run for mayor, and I, along with nine other candidates, lost to Tom Barrett. But then, I worked in Mayor Barrett’s office for a few years and finally went out on my own as an entrepreneur. In 2016, Dan Bader, CEO of Bader Philanthropies, asked me to head the construction of this beautiful building we are sitting in, the headquarters for Bader Philanthropies. Eventually, he asked me to be a vice president.  

You are the Vice President for Engagement at Bader Philanthropies. What exactly are your job responsibilities?

I know the streets, and I’m an advocate for poor people because I see myself in those people. I believe poverty is temporary. You can end it, but it takes work. I represent Bader Philanthropies in the community, and this can be the whole city or a single neighborhood. I also represent Bader in large citywide initiatives. I go out and learn the needs of people, the city and nonprofits and bring that knowledge back here. For example, take housing. People need a decent place to live in order to focus on their growth. For years, housing had not been part of the Bader initiatives. It is now.

I think I have an example. For a number of years, you’ve been involved in improving the predominantly Black Harambee neighborhood. This includes engagement activities with business owners, faith community leaders, residents and community groups. Where is the Harambee community located, and what has been accomplished? 

In 2018, Bader Philanthropies moved here to the 3300 block of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Drive. This is the Harambee neighborhood, and that is why the board put the focus on Harambee. Boundaries run from Keefe Avenue to the north and North Avenue to the south, and from the Highway 43 freeway to the west over to Holton Street to the east. As far as accomplishments, we used to fund education for the entire city, but we’ve scaled that back to include just schools in the Harambee neighborhood. This allows us to dive deeper and be more focused on the educational needs of the children attending those schools.

Are the infrastructure improvements you help fund paid for by revenue from grants?

Yes, for example, we gave more than a million dollars to Habitat for Humanity to build 40-some plus homes. We also put millions of dollars into nonprofit employment organizations who educate and train people who need to get jobs. If these people are not trained, they sit, and you know what happens when people sit. Nothin’ good. Next door to our building here, we bought and renovated an old building that now houses a holistic health facility and also the restaurant, Sam’s Place.

There is a proposed development in the works called The Opportunity Center. The Opportunity Center intends to bring sports, education, mental health and community engagement all into one large space. Where will it be located?

We already own the land, 22 acres. The Opportunity Center will be located on Green Bay Road, north of Capital Drive. The original idea for the Opportunity Center was mine, but after I met Damian Buchman of The Ability Center, and decided to partner with him, the complete facility was imagined.

Last year, you received a $5 million dollar grant from Bader Philanthropies for The Opportunity Center, but this project would ultimately cost $80 million.

That is correct. We are working on raising the money. The original idea came from my sports background. Youth sports can be very important to a young person’s development, regardless of their talents or ability to play. Kids who are around positive men as coaches and leaders can do wonders. So many young people just need somebody positive to be around. Other than some city parks, there are very few community facilities in the central city for kids. Especially in the winter, they need a place to go for recreational activities. 

One of your efforts is to make youth sports more available to low-income families. Why is that important and how are you going about it?

Let’s say you are a central city youth, and you want to formally train to be a baseball player. You will need to go all the way to Franklin for a pay to play program, and it will cost you $3,000+. For volleyball, it’s even more. This means that these young central city guys and girls can’t play. This should not have to happen in America. So, we build an alliance, and we ask, “What’s it gonna take for all kids to play?”  

You once said, and I quote, “In terms of style, I like to paint a picture, show people I’m leading where we’re heading and then inspire them to get there.” Can you elaborate, maybe give an example?

My style is ‘leadership by showing up.’ I lead by explaining to people what the goal is, what we are trying to accomplish and why, and what is the benefit. I’m a passionate guy around the things I love to do. I encourage people to take part, even if they’re only moving a little piece of the puzzle. I believe in collaboration to create the “whole.” For example, imagine what Black people could accomplish if we lock arms and embrace being “African,” not just if we’re from the south or north or Chicago or Detroit. We are all “African,” a uniting concept.

You also once said, “We have great leaders in this town, but we have to get out of our chairs and go into the community and try your best to be as empathetic as you can about the journeys that these folks are traveling.” Are the leaders getting out of their chairs?

Some are getting out of their chairs. For example, take the great local leader, Michael Lovell, the president of Marquette University. He just keeps moving forward to improve Marquette and the community. I model my leadership style after him: ‘Get up, get out there, and get on with it.’ Unfortunately, there are some downtown leaders who claim to have answers for inner city problems, but they have never walked those streets.  

You have pointed to a few keys for successful relationship building including “showing up.” You said, “Showing up authentically, not with an agenda, not to fulfill some goal in my title, just showing up to help people. Secondly, treating people like people. Listening to them. Being there for them. No judgments, no assumptions. And third, do not come with the solution, come in a genuine authentic way to work together to solve the problem on the table.” Would you say this philosophy has worked for you?

Absolutely. I learned this approach from the great Nelson Mandela. He negotiated with South Africa President F.W. de Klerk about turning over South Africa to the Black leaders, the ANC. Mandela was criticized by his own people for this kind of compromising. Mandela said, “When you negotiate with people, you do it with an open mind, not with judgement.” I live by the approach of let’s be authentic. Let’s just see people as human beings first—forget the labels like criminal, druggie, poor, bigot—rather, look at what this person needs today to improve versus where they will be tomorrow. 

You and Marquette President Michael Lovell have worked together in a number of areas, including founding SWIM (Scaling Wellness in Milwaukee), an initiative aimed at making Milwaukee the most trauma informed city in the country. How does SWIM work?

During the civil uprising after the gas station shooting in Sherman Park in 2020, I saw an adult reach for his gun and shoot it three times in the air. The teenage protesters were not phased. The shots did not bother them. How much violence did these kids have to witness to become so numb? This is generational trauma. Later, Mike and his wife, Amy, invited me to a panel discussion at Marquette and I told that very story. After the meeting, Michael and Amy Lovell asked me to work with them to bring SWIM to the community. They defined SWIM as an organization that addresses generational trauma that impact the lives of African American people. It’s about recognizing those people with trauma and getting them the help they need. 

What about the street leaders, the community organizers, the people who work the neighborhoods? They are mostly volunteers. Can you give grants to them?

I know many of those guys, and they are doing a great job in their neighborhoods. They know what’s going on. But they need to organize themselves into a 501c3, nonprofit organization and have a unified plan. Bader Philanthropies cannot give grants to individuals, only to organizations who go through the application process. A good example of a former street leader who got organized is Victor Barnett of Running Rebels. We’ve given grants to Running Rebels.