By Billy Atkins
There is a valuable resource available in West Virginia of which many Mountaineers are unaware. Community foundations offer great potential for improvements not only within communities but also around the state made in the name of philanthropy.
According to the Council on Foundations’ Abbreviated History of the Philanthropic Tradition in the United States, “Philanthropy has strong roots in religious beliefs, the history of mutual assistance, democratic principles of civic participation, pluralistic approaches to problem-solving and American traditions of individual autonomy and limited government.” Those beliefs and traditions remain strong in West Virginia.
During the early 20th century, civic and business leaders organized their philanthropic giving as private foundations modeled after the business corporations that were then successful. In 1914, Frederick H. Goff, a banker and lawyer, established the first community foundation in Cleveland, Ohio when he created a community trust that pooled the charitable resources of Cleveland’s philanthropists into a single permanent endowment for the betterment of the city. By 2007, the movement had grown to 717 community foundations in the United States that collectively held more than $56 billion in assets and distributed more than $4.3 billion in scholarships and grants.
In 1962, The Greater Kanawha Valley Foundation, the first community foundation in West Virginia, was formed to accept contributions, create and administer funds and make grants to benefit area citizens. By 2008, it held $105 million in assets and awarded more than $5.8 million in grants and scholarships. The community foundation movement in West Virginia has grown to more than 30 foundations serving 54 of the state’s 55 counties. Despite this, many West Virginians remain unaware of the foundations and the substantial benefits they bestow.
The Council on Foundations, an organization which promotes philanthropy by establishing good governance practices and accrediting foundations that follow such practices, describes modern community foundations as tax-exempt public charities overseen by volunteer boards of leading citizens and operated by professionals with expertise in identifying their communities’ needs. Foundations serve the people within a defined geographic area through the efforts of those who share a common interest in improving the quality of life in the area. Foundations build, invest and administer the permanent charitable funds created by individuals, families and businesses to carry out the broad-based charitable interests of the community and to meet the challenges of changing times.
According to Dorothy Reynolds, former CEO of the Greater Flint Community Foundation, community foundations have three functions.
Foundations provide a vehicle for philanthropy for individuals and organizations by creating endowments to fund grants and scholarships for charitable purposes in the community. Donors can establish funds by contributing a variety of assets and may also recommend grants in their names, if they choose, to charities they want to support. In 2007, West Virginia foundations held assets valued in excess of $288 million.
Foundations serve as grantmakers of scholarships and grants, as well. In 2007, West Virginia foundations awarded scholarships and grants in excess of $12.6 million.
They also provide leadership in the community as an effective, independent arena for addressing issues and advocating for needed programs or policies. Because the governing board is composed of community leaders who have demonstrated a commitment and loyalty to the community, the foundation has the credibility to persuade others to support issues or change. For example, the Greater Morgantown Community Trust (GMCT) was instrumental in the community’s financing of athletic facilities at the new University High School in Morgantown. The foundation’s efforts included handling donations, writing grants and facilitating a $3.4 million bond issue. “I don’t see how we could have done it any other way,” says Fred Horton, University High School Athletic Facilities Committee president. “GMCT provided the credibility within the community to get it done.”
Gifts to community foundations are attractive for a variety of reasons. First, they are tax deductible and simple to make. A gift to a charitable area of interest may benefit several organizations without the donor having to identify the agencies to receive it. All assets are managed by investment professionals and all receipts and expenditures are independently audited and fully disclosed to the public. The gifts become part of a perpetual trust with the income continuing through the years to satisfy philanthropic purposes. Foundations also have the flexibility to address the changing charitable needs of the community if the gift’s purpose becomes impractical or obsolete.
The growth in community foundations is in part the result of the inherently human charitable impulse that philanthropy begins at home. Community foundations offer donors the opportunity to support causes close to their communities and their hearts. They also offer people of modest means an opportunity to be philanthropists by contributing to funds in a charitable area of interest, thereby leaving a lasting legacy for their communities.
For more information about the community foundation in your area, please visit the West Virginia Grantmakers Association (wvgrantmakers.org) or the West Virginia Community Foundations Consortium (givetowestvirginia.org).
