As we celebrate 25 years of strengthening and transforming our community through the powerful act of philanthropy, we’ve taken time to recognize some of our local nonprofit partners and donors who have made our work possible. But there’s another entity that has greatly impacted the successes in the community foundation world, right from our very beginning.
Lilly Endowment’s Giving Indiana Funds for Tomorrow (GIFT) program was launched to support and empower local efforts that strengthen Indiana. When CFWC was created in 1998, GIFT III had challenged our community to raise matching funds that supported early efforts like establishing the White County Council on Aging Fund to provide ongoing mission support, or funding special projects like Anson Wolcott House kitchen remodel.
It didn’t take long for our citizens to recognize that community foundations offer a unique path toward accomplishing community goals. In our first participation of Lilly Endowment’s GIFT initiative, over $1 Million was raised and matched in local dollars, fueling a new era of utilizing the community foundation to pursue charitable dreams and uplift the White County community.
Twenty-five years have passed, and Lilly Endowment is still making a great impact here. Most recently, GIFT VII challenged White County to focus efforts toward growing unrestricted giving through a 2:1 matching opportunity, allowing more dollars to be available to address ever-emerging needs in our community.
Another effort from GIFT VII challenged community foundations to examine their leadership role in their communities, which led to a collaborative effort with e2 Entrepreneurial Ecosystems and Rural Community Solutions to compile White County data and professionally facilitate community conversations.
The information garnered from GIFT VII has initially resulted in two proactive grants to support mental wellness efforts at Valley Oaks Health and to help fund the White County United Way’s Community Navigator program, ensuring that citizens in our community have access to resources when they need them. We are continuing to evaluate our leadership role under GIFT VII’s challenge and are working closely with our nonprofit partners to identify the best path for community support.
Our efforts continue on, much thanks to the support of Lilly Endowment and of course, our steadfast donors who are eager to double their impact through GIFT’s matching opportunities. Today, your Community Foundation of White County holds over $12 Million in assets in over 110 funds that each uniquely serve our community, many of which formed under Lilly Endowment’s GIFT program.
Take advantage of our current matching opportunity in celebration of our 25th anniversary. Thanks to an anonymous donor, all gifts toward our “25 by 25” Challenge will be matched 1:1 (up to $25,000) to go toward a special proactive grant to be announced at our anniversary event in May. Donate online today at www.cfwhitecounty.org or call director Lucy Dold at (574) 583-6911 to learn more about making your charitable dreams come true.
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