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15 Aug

Posted at 14:50h in Community News
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Grant County, August 2023—Making a will creates peace of mind for you and the people and organizations you love. That’s why the Community Foundation of Grant County has made the processes of completing your will easy with a new tool called FreeWill. The Community Foundation has partnered with FreeWill, a secure, online will-maker, which will allow you to fill out your free, legally-valid will forms in less than 20 minutes. Just answer a few questions about yourself, your assets, and your wishes, and the will-making tool provides forms and instructions for how to make your will valid in the state where you live. There are several reasons why this is vitally important to do now.  -  Everyone needs a will, whether you’re 18 or 80. And there’s no better moment than now to begin planning for the future. -  Your will gives you peace of mind knowing that your loved ones are taken care of your assets are distributed accurately, and that your charitable gift reflects your personal values. Selecting the right estate planning vehicle can allow you to reduce your estate taxes and income taxes while avoiding the stress and cost of interstate probate proceedings and, if you choose, creating a larger...

09 Aug

Posted at 19:09h in Community News, Grantmaking Impact
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The Community Foundation of Grant County is excited to announce three crowdfunding campaign goals with East Central Indiana Robotics - PhyXTGears Team 1720 (PhyXTGears), Habitat for Humanity of Grant County (Habitat), and Indiana Motorcycle Preservation Society (IMPS). PhyXTGears launched their crowdfunding campaign on July 15th and aims to crowdfund $20,000 to prepare high school students for Indiana’s technology workforce through hands-on STEM training. PhyXTGears’ campaign will end September 13th at midnight. Learn more and donate online to support this campaign by visiting www.GiveToGrant.org/RoboticsCF. Habitat launched their crowdfunding campaign on July 21st and aims to crowdfund $20,000 to provide a new 3-bedroom home for the Williams family. Habitat's campaign will end September 19th at midnight. Learn more and donate online to support this campaign by visiting www.GiveToGrant.org/HabitatCF. IMPS launched their crowdfunding campaign on July 17th and aims to crowdfund $10,000 to showcase Indiana's motorcycle history and preserve Marion's “hog” heritage with a permanent exhibit. IMPS’ campaign will end September 15th at midnight. Learn more and donate online to support this campaign by visiting www.GiveToGrant.org/IMPSCF. The Foundation will track all charitable contributions made by donors for each campaign. If the organizations meet their fundraising goals, the Foundation will award them a dollar-for-dollar matching grant to complete...

03 Apr

Posted at 19:44h in Community News
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Does your business need access to a fully equipped, state-of-the art audio-video, recording, podcasting, and editing software and hardware/equipment, in a well-designed studio in Grant County? Do you need to produce audio and/or video content that is relevant to the Grant County community, your customers, and people of all abilities? Do you need someone to walk alongside with you to teach you how to use the equipment and software? Carey Services, in partnership with the Community Foundation of Grant County and the City of Marion, has a resource for you today! Please call Richard Coburn at 765-506-4616 to schedule a no-cost, one-hour session (some extended time is possible, depending on content and need) at the Carey Services Digital Content Creative Studio at the Community Foundation of Grant County’s Collaboration Center (511 W 3rd Street, Marion). If the content you create is beneficial to people with disabilities, you can have the opportunity to directly post what you create to the 11 kiosks that are stationed throughout the City of Marion, with your content to be included on www.GCSocial.net as well! Check it out, today! Find more information here:  www.GCSocial.net GC Social Creative Studio What does the Creative Studio offer?  ...

15 Mar

Posted at 19:44h in Community News, Featured Story
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Together, the Grant County Convention and Visitors Bureau, the Grant County Economic Growth Council, Greater Grant County, Indiana Wesleyan University, and the Community Foundation of Grant County are all partnering together to bring a Community Development Course to Grant County. “Each of these sponsors believe that to remain relevant and, ultimately, to thrive, communities of all sizes must tackle challenges and pursue opportunities comprehensively, creatively, and collaboratively," said Kylie Jackson, President/CEO at Greater Grant County. “That means, assets and trade-offs must be understood and investments in people and place require increased focus.” “That’s why we’ve invited Ball State University’s Indiana Communities Institute, in partnership with Creative Insight Community Development, to deliver a 2.5-day Community Development Course to help build a foundation for a stronger and more sustainable Grant County,” said Dawn Brown, President/CEO at the Community Foundation of Grant County. The Indiana Communities Institute (ICI) at Ball State University, in partnership with Creative Insight Community Development (CICD), will help local communities work together to realize positive change through the Community-Based Action Planning (CBAP) process. The facilitators from both organizations have more than 150 years of community development experience. CBAP is a participant-oriented, “learn by doing” experience rooted in social science research and built on practical...

02 Feb

Posted at 18:40h in Community News, Featured Story, Grantmaking Impact
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Every day at the Community Foundation of Grant County, individuals and families create lasting impact for the betterment of Grant County by ensuring their generosity will benefit generations to come through endowment. Last week, $316,000 was distributed to 65 local nonprofit organizations that benefit from an endowment fund at the Community Foundation. This Designated Grant Cycle is the first of six grantmaking cycles offered in 2023 by the Foundation. The grants come from designated funds, which support one or more specific organizations. The funds have been established by the organization itself or by donors to provide a reliable source of support for organizations they care about. This year’s designated fund grants range from $110 to more than $22,000. “No doubt, nonprofit budgets continue to be challenged. We are grateful for the donors who have established these funds and for the opportunity to provide these designated grants to support the good work of our nonprofits,” said Dawn Brown, Community Foundation President and CEO. “Because the funds are endowed, our nonprofits can count on these grants every year.” Earnings provide an additional source of annual income for the nonprofit organizations. Each year, a portion of each organization’s fund growth is distributed through a grant and a...

30 Nov

Posted at 18:17h in Community News, Featured Story
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The Community Foundation of Grant County announced recently that it is committed to building a bold new way to accelerate positive social outcomes through a local impact investing program as an extension of its community leadership efforts. The Foundation recognizes that its assets, over 90% of which are endowed, positions the organization to bring new tools, such as local impact investing, to address the needs and opportunities of Grant County. The purpose of the Impact Investing program is to make socially impactful loan investments that provide a financial return and measurably advance a prosperous Grant County via the social return on investment. The program will invest in people, projects, businesses, and nonprofit organizations that address economic prosperity, quality of life, and access to opportunity for residents of Grant County. “We believe that philanthropic capital can further the betterment of Grant County through grants as well as investments,” said Dawn Brown, President and CEO of the Community Foundation. “More than any nonprofit organization, community foundations have the ability to deploy a diverse set of tools to address community needs, including grantmaking, donor engagement, and loan investments. As community foundations seek innovative ways to build community wealth and health, more are adopting impact investing...

17 Nov

Posted at 21:08h in Community News
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The Community Foundation of Grant County joins more than 1,000 other community foundations across America to mark Community Foundation Week, set this year for Nov. 12 to 18. Our goal in participating is to raise awareness about the role of philanthropy and to foster local collaborations and innovations to address persistent civic and economic challenges in our community. Launched Nov. 12, 1989, through a proclamation by former President George H.W. Bush, the first Community Foundation Week included a congressional briefing about the work of community foundations throughout the nation and their collaborative approach to working with the public, private and nonprofit sectors to address community challenges. The first community foundation was established in 1914 in Cleveland, Ohio. Community foundations in Indiana alone made more than $194 million in grants in 2020 and held more than $4.3 billion in assets. Your Community Foundation of Grant County manages more than $28.5 million in assets. Last year, it awarded $1.12 million in grants and scholarships. Former Indiana Secretary of State Connie Lawson once described the role of community foundations this way: “Community foundations in Indiana play a key role in identifying and solving problems across our state. Each foundation has an in-depth knowledge of local concerns,...

08 Nov

Posted at 20:38h in Community News, Featured Story
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A new alternative to payday lending in Grant County will provide financially vulnerable families with convenient, small-dollar, low-interest, flexible-term loans. This innovative hybrid loan program will provide families with immediate access to the cash they need to provide some much-needed financial stability while also helping them build a savings account for future financial security. The alternative payday lending program is made possible through a unique partnership between Afena Federal Credit Union and the Community Foundation of Grant County. The alternative payday lending program was designed to help financially under-resourced families in three ways: 1) By providing affordable financing to assist families in getting back on their feet once they return to work following the COVID-19 pandemic, 2) By helping financially under-resourced families build an emergency savings account, and 3) By helping income-vulnerable families improve their credit scores. We know that our professional lenders are working hard to serve the people of Grant County. And we know that there are times when they simply can’t approve a customer’s loan request due to credit issues, income limitations, and other challenges. For people who don’t qualify for traditional financing options, an unexpected expense can quickly spiral into a major problem. Which means if the refrigerator...

21 Sep

Posted at 20:33h in Community News, Featured Story
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On Friday, October 21st at 8AM, Professional Advisors are invited to join the Community Foundation of Grant County for a free breakfast and 3 hours of Continuing Education Credits with speaker, David Bennett, President Community Foundation Research and Training Institute. “Federal tax laws regarding charitable giving have changed dramatically in the last few years – and more changes are on the horizon," said David Bennett, President Community Foundation Research and Training Institute. “In this seminar, we will review recent changes in federal tax law, as well as tax-smart options for your clients. Topics to be covered include federal income and estate taxes, Qualified Charitable Distributions, tax implications of noncash gifts, gifts with income, and retained life estates.” “Philanthropy should be fun, it should be simple and flexible, it should offer tax benefits and professional management with public accountability and transparency," said Dawn Brown, President and CEO. “Which is what we offer to your clients. Some of the greatest opportunities to make charitable gifts arise when making major business, personal, and financial decisions. Let us help.” “Strong community foundations help build strong communities which is what we all want,” said Shelly Jones, Development Manager. “We know our Professional Advisors care about their clients and...

30 Aug

Posted at 17:49h in Community News, Grantmaking Impact
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(Marion, IN – August 26, 2022) The Community Foundation of Grant County is excited to announce both Habitat for Humanity of Grant County (Habitat) and City of Marion Parks and Recreation Department (the City of Marion) exceeded their crowdfunding campaign goals. The Community Foundation offers crowdfunding opportunities to Grant County organizations annually. Organizations apply for this opportunity during the annual Give to Grant Cycle in the spring. If a crowdfunding proposal is approved, organizations have 60 days to raise dollar-for-dollar what they requested in their proposal. Habitat exceeded its crowdfunding goal of $20,000 by raising $25,679 from community contributions. Combined with $20,000 in matching dollars from the Foundation this makes a total of $45,679 to support the construction of a new Habitat home in Grant County. The City of Marion exceeded its crowdfunding goal of $20,000 by raising $22,775 from community contributions. Combined with $20,000 in matching dollars from the Foundation this makes a total of $42,775 to fund the dredging and renovation of the Matter Park fishing pond. Together, in just two months, Grant County donors contributed $48,454 to these two crowdfunding campaigns. With matching dollars from the Foundation, this makes a total of $88,454 raised to support the betterment of Grant County...