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Creating My Own Fund

Creating a charitable fund within the Community Foundation is quick and easy. Following are six simple steps to guide you in the creation of your own personal fund.

What Are My Goals?

What do you want to achieve through the establishment of a fund?  Do you have a favorite charity or charitable purpose that you would like to support?  Or, are you interested in providing scholarships for younger generations?

You may simply wish to create an unrestricted fund that will serve the emerging needs of your community in any charitable field. With such funds, the Community Foundation will be responsible for responding to the most urgent charitable needs in the name of your fund.

Permanent recognition is an important benefit provided by the Community Foundation.  We are in the best possible position to fulfill this objective for you. By creating an endowment fund, your fund will receive recognition in perpetuity.

What Are My Options?

You can realize nearly any charitable intent by choosing from the variety of fund types offered by the Foundation. These fund types can be created as “endowment funds” (permanent resources for the community) or as “pass-thru funds” (temporary charitable vehicles that close upon the fulfillment of their charitable purpose.)

Endowment funds are permanent funds that distribute a percentage of the fund’s value for those charitable purposes set forth in the written agreement between you and the Community Foundation. The name of the fund will receive perpetual recognition as all grants will carry the name of the fund. In addition, the Community Foundation provides profiles of its endowment fund donors in each of its annual reports. A gift of $10,000 ($25,000 for scholarships) or more will enable a fund to be classified as an endowment.

Pass-thru funds are temporary funds in which all of the assets of the fund are available for distribution. Often, donors will create a pass-thru fund with the objective of adding to the fund over time in order to reach endowment status. A gift of $500 or more will enable you to open a named fund.

What Type Of A Fund Should I Consider?

Once you have determined your goals, you will want to consider one or more of the following fund types.

What Name Shall I Give To My Fund?

A fund’s name is a permanent part of that fund. Whenever a grant is made from a fund, that grant will be recognized by the fund name.  Choosing a name is an important consideration when creating a fund.  The following examples may be helpful to you.

  • Name of the individual establishing the fund
    (John Smith Endowment Fund)
  •  Name of the couple establishing the fund
    (John and Jane Smith Endowment Fund)
  • Name of the family represented by the donor
    (Smith Family Endowment Fund)
  •  Name of a favorite charity or charitable purpose
    (Fox Valley Healthcare Fund or Geneva Fund for the Arts)
  • Name of a deceased loved one
    (John Smith Memorial Endowment Fund)

What Is The Best Way To Make My Gift?

The following methods of giving will help you to create your fund now.

  • Cash
  • Securities
  • Closely Held Stock
  • Real Estate
  • Transfer Of A Private Foundation
  • Charitable Lead Trusts

Should you wish to have a fund created at a future time, these methods may be used.

  • Bequests
  • Life Insurance
  • Charitable Remainder Trusts
  • Charitable Gift Annuities

What Do I Do Now?

After you have considered the many possibilities available to you, we will do the rest. Please contact us today if we may answer your questions or provide additional information.

Give your gift of time and see what it means to the people you impact. Helping others is what life is all about.

Neal Ormond

Donor & Fund Advisor

Being a part of the Community Foundation scholarship committee is the highlight of my year. For many, a scholarship from the CFFRV is the reason they are able to continue reaching for their dreams and changing the future of our world. I hope each recipients knows just how inspirational they are to those of us who are lucky enough to read their stories.

Jessica Breugelmans

Scholarship Committee Member and Board Member

I am incredibly grateful for the generosity of the Zari Foundation Scholarship and the Community Foundation in supporting my education. I am majoring in mechanical engineering with a concentration in aerospace engineering at the Rose-Hulman Institue of Technology. In my spare time, I volunteer on campus, in the community and I’m also the principal violist in the symphony orchestra. I hope to make an impact on the next chapter of space exploration by eventually working at a groundbreaking aerospace company such as SpaceX or NASA.

Taytum Newell

Albert M. Zari Scholarship Recipient

Education is important to us. We support causes that touch our lives and align with our values. We believe in paying it forward. We are here for a short time,, and it is the next generation that will take on what we leave behind.

Michelle Emanuel

Donor and Past Scholarship Recipient

Grant funds from the Community Foundation helped provide updated technology. These upgrades were transformative. By creating new time saving processes, it turned us into a more efficient organization.

Marie Wilkinson Food Pantry

Grantee

YEP was a great experience to have in high school. I became a more confident person, someone with a lot more perspective. Coming from a small school, YEP allowed me to branch out into my community, meet students from other schools, and learn about their backgrounds. I made some great friends and still keep in touch with them today.

Abby Vagnoni

YEP Alumni

YEP has made me realize the importance of being involved in my community, and how to make a difference. There are a lot of problems in the world but if we can do everything that we can to help the world will become a better place. YEP has helped me realize this and encouraged me to help more people in the future.

Madi Porter

YEP Member

Give your gift of time and see what it means to the people you impact. Helping others is what life is all about.

Neal Ormond

Donor & Fund Advisor

Being a part of the Community Foundation scholarship committee is the highlight of my year. For many, a scholarship from the CFFRV is the reason they are able to continue reaching for their dreams and changing the future of our world. I hope each recipients knows just how inspirational they are to those of us who are lucky enough to read their stories.

Jessica Breugelmans

Scholarship Committee Member and Board Member

Community Foundation of the Fox River Valley

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