Philanthropy.
It’s a big word with even bigger rewards, but it’s really very simple – and it’s the reason that community foundations exist.
Philanthropy is the charitable giving of time, talent, and treasure.
What’s really exciting about charitable giving is that it rewards both the donor and the recipient. Sometimes it’s just a “feel good” reward; and sometimes, with thoughtful planning, it continues to yield rewards far into the future.
For most of us, philanthropy begins in small ways – supporting a bake sale at church or school, throwing change into a donation bucket, or volunteering to work at an event. You probably don’t even think of it as philanthropy. But your contribution is added to a greater whole, and good things happen. Whether you have contributed time, talent, treasure, or all three, your community benefits.
When charitable giving becomes a conscious part of your life commitment, there is no limit of opportunity. You have choices to make – not just who will receive your gifts, but how they will receive them. Will your donation be a one-time gift, an annual gift, or something involving a planned gift, either now or through your estate?
Community foundations provide a resource through which you can invest your philanthropic interests for both long- and short-term benefit of your community. We can provide a number of options to help you design a plan that best fits your charitable intentions.
The over 100 Funds that you see listed within our Foundation have been developed by people and organizations who wanted to put their philanthropic interests to work in their community: some people have created scholarships; others distribute their earnings to designated charities. They see their philanthropy in action today, knowing that it will continue into many tomorrows. How exciting!
If you would like to design a plan to put your philanthropic interests into action, contact Community Foundation of White County Director, Lucy Dold at (574) 583-6911 or log on to www.cfwhitecounty.org.