Please contact the TCCF office if you are interested in establishing a fund!  There are many options to choose from when making this most charitable decision and our office can help you choose the best one to fit your individual needs.

Unrestricted Endowed Fund:

          This is the most flexible gift made to the Foundation and enables the Foundation to respond to changing community needs from year to year.  The Board of Directors is given discretion to make grants from the annual earnings for a broad range of community needs.  It may be named by the donor, or become part of a pool of other unrestricted gifts.

Restricted Endowed Funds:

• Field of Interest Endowed Funds:  The Donor transfers an irrevocable gift to the Foundation for investment and management.  The donor directs the TCCF to make grants from the annual earnings in a specific program area.  The Foundation or its designated advisory committee chooses the specific recipient from among those submitting grant requests that meet the criteria for that field of interest.  The fund can be named by the donor or added to the pool of other funds designated for that field of interest.  Examples of common fields of interest are listed below, but many others are possible.
  • Beautification/ Historic Preservation
  • Health
  • Education
  • Youth
  • Arts, Humanities, Music, Drama, etc.
  • Other areas important to you
• Donor Advised Endowed Funds:  The Donor irrevocable transfers assets tot he Foundation and actively participates by making recommendations regarding the distribution of the annual earnings.  The donor may recommend charitable recipients or purposes that might receive the grants.  The recommendations must be advisory only and the Foundation Board of Direcotrs must then approve these as consistent with the Foundation's mission and within nonprofit guidelines.  Assets held in donor advised funds are TCCF's property, subject to the organization's exclusive legal control.  Please note that Donor advised funds may only be used for charitable purposes and not for the benefit of the donor or donor advisor.  Donor Advised funds are flexible, simple to establish, a way to provide a charitable legacy for the donor and/or his family, professionally managed and include an array of grant making support services.
• Donor Designated Endowed Funds:  The Donor irrevocably transfers assets to the Foundation and designates a specific, named agency/organization to receive grants from the annual earnings forever.  The donor may name the fund in honor of either a specific person, or for the agency/organization.  The Community Foundation owns the fund ans works with the donor if questions arise.  A donor who wishes others to add to the fund usually names it for the agency/organization.
• Agency/Organization Endowment:  A nonporfit agency or organization places its endowment funds with the Community Foundation for management and investment.  The Foundation regularly distributes earnings to the agency/organization for its use accordingly to the established contract guidelines.  The agency or organization should contact the Thomas County Community Foundation to discuss the establishment of an angency-endowed fund and the new incentives now being offered through our investment policy in light of our May 2nd meeting with Pete Peterson.