What Is a Community Foundation?
The Community Foundation Defined
A community foundation is a tax-exempt, nonprofit, autonomous, publicly supported, philanthropic institution composed primarily of permanent funds established by many separate donors for the long-term diverse, charitable benefit of the residents of a defined geographic area. Typically, a community foundation serves an area no larger than a state. Today, there are more than 1,700 community foundations around the world with 750 in the United States. Most establish permanent, named funds with the goal of endowment building to meet future community needs.
The Reality
Each community foundation works in different ways depending on the community it serves. Underlying all is a commitment to our donors to help make their philanthropic dreams come true and to our nonprofit constituents to help build capacity with monetary and technical assistance and to be a leader or catalyst in our communities. We are here building endowments for the long haul – as we often say, Here for Good. We are also here to meet today’s needs with today’s dollars.
The Community Foundation of the Gunnison Valley, Here for Good
The CFGV helps people give where they live – or where their heart is, in the case of our generous part-time residents. We know our donors, financial advisors and nonprofit agencies well and can facilitate a donor’s specific wishes quickly and easily.
The CFGV works with donors to make their philanthropy match their passions. There are as many ways of giving as there are people in the Valley. And we welcome working with all. A donor may add $5.00 to our grant fund which helps fund our annual competitive grants cycle. Another donor may open a Donor Advised Fund to stay actively involved by making recommendations for distributions. Yet another donor may include the Foundation in their will, creating a legacy for themselves and their family that allows them to continue having an impact on the Valley long after they themselves are gone.
The Foundation works with nonprofits to build their capacity to do their work in the Valley through Community Grants, our STEP Program, free and low-cost workshops, or through Fiscal Sponsorship.
Finally, the Foundation serves as a community leader and convener. When issues can be addressed by inviting groups or individuals to come together to discuss a particular issue or when a facilitator is needed for a community meeting, often the Foundation can convene a meeting or facilitate/moderate one.
The diversity of our board members and the number of constituents with whom they are involved along with our nonprofit agencies help us identify today’s needs and watch for future trends. The Forever Fund, a community endowment, will address changing needs over time with local people making decisions about our own community needs. It is an empowering process for our donors, for our grantees and for our community.
National Standards
The Community Foundation of the Gunnison Valley meets National Standards for operational quality, donor service and accountability in the community foundation sector.
The National Standards Seal by our name indicates official confirmation from the Council on Foundations that we have met the most rigorous standards in philanthropy. This seal confirms that our commitment to financial security, transparency and accountability. It says our grantmaking includes an open, competitive process designed to address the changing needs of our community.
The National Standards for U.S. Community Foundations Program was established in 2000 in cooperation with the Council on Foundations. National Standards guide community foundations in establishing legal, ethical and effective operational practices that serve as blueprints for internal development and benchmarks for external assessment. National Standards require CFGV to document its policies in donor services, investment management, grantmaking and administration. To receive confirmation of National Standards compliance, CFGV submitted its organizational and financial policies and procedures to a rigorous peer review.
The dollars set aside for charity in the Gunnison Valley are precious. The institutions that donors choose to support must be credible and trustworthy. As a symbol of excellence and rigor, the National Standards Seal helps philanthropists and their professional advisers recognize and choose CFGV as a sound place to give and make a difference. The Community Foundation is honored to be among those Foundations approved to use the seal.
CFGV is Confirmed in Compliance with the National Standards for U.S. Community Foundations