As president of the Gilmore Foundation, Laura Cullinan leads the foundation, which since its inception, has given over $18 million to enhance the livability of Peoria, Tazewell, and Woodford counties. Established by the late Bob Gilmore in 2009, the Gilmore Foundation is focused on enhancing culture and the arts, improving society through youth development and human services, and job creation through capital improvement projects and infrastructure development. Prior to her current role, Cullinan was a practicing attorney and served as corporate counsel at RLI Corp., where she specialized in corporate governance, public company compliance, and regulatory compliance.
Prior to returning to her hometown of Peoria, she served as an attorney in the Office of General Counsel at Sidley Austin LLP in Chicago, Illinois. Laura earned her Juris Doctor at the Loyola University Chicago School of Law and received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Notre Dame.
In 2022 Cullinan announced a $1 million commitment from the Gilmore Foundation to the museum in support of the acquisition of major exhibitions. The gift matched the original gift made by Peoria philanthropist Bob Gilmore 10 years earlier in support of the museum’s founding.
