Heritage Fund : The Community Foundation of Bartholomew County

  Your Foundation of Possibilities...

 2013 Not-for-Profit Training Series   

The Let's Practice Outcomes session scheduled on Thursday, April 25th has been cancelled due to health issues.

 Welcoming Community

 Will Miller, president of The Wallace Foundation in New York City and former president and CEO of Irwin Management Company was the keynote speaker at the Human Rights Commission Annual Meeting on April 10th. The theme of the meeting was “The Columbus Journey to Building a Welcoming Community.” Will focused his speech on how a commitment to making everyone in a community feel welcome and respected is in everyone’s best interest.

Will’s speech in 2004 at the Economic Development Board Annual Meeting was a key driver to the Heritage Fund’s Outreach Committee’s Welcoming Community work. His graphic of critical issues a community needed to address to create a healthy and vibrant economic base was based on the presence of three factors:

• Attractive Educational Opportunities
• Leisure and Cultural Activities
• Welcoming Culture

Following the 2004 speech the Outreach Committee conducted its first Welcoming Community study and found that while Columbus has many positive attributes it was not perceived as a welcoming community to all people, particularly:

• People outside the traditional mainstream
• Young people
• Newcomers

 In the years since results of study were published community leaders and organizations have worked to address recommendations made by the Committee. The Outreach Committee conducted a follow up study; Welcoming Community II (WCII) in 2011 to gauge whether there had been improvements. Will referenced the groundbreaking work of the studies during his speech at the Human Rights Dinner. WC II reported many areas of improvement within the community and offered seven recommendations for community leaders, organizations and residents to continue to grow the welcoming factor.

Welcoming Community II Report

The Outreach Committee continues its work in promoting the importance of a welcoming culture in Columbus and Bartholomew County. We encourage you to read more about the study and contact Lyn Morgan, lmorgan@heritagefundbc.org with any comments and questions. 
 

Community Fund Grants Program

 Heritage Fund invited staff and Board members from local not-for-profit organizations to attend a breakfast meeting at YES Cinema on March 12th to learn about changes to the Community Fund Grant Program.

In 2012 the Heritage Board undertook a detail review of policies and procedures. The process included a revision of the Areas of Initiative. Heritage Fund’s Board of Directors has identified four community issues where the foundation intends to take an active leadership role. The Areas of Initiative provide the framework for the Community Fund Grants Program.

The Community Fund Grants Program provides a flexible approach in providing funding support to not-for-profit organizations serving Bartholomew County. Organizations have four options to seek funding support. Heritage Fund will invest in local non-profit organizations that are governed by a strong and effective Board that have a proven record of success.

Community Investment Grants
The Community Investment Program was created to encourage innovative ideas and solutions that will address our community’s most pressing needs and make Bartholomew County a welcoming and vibrant place to live and work. The grant program is designed to offer support for programs and initiatives that provide a strategic and innovative approach that will positively impact the community and deliver measurable results.

Positive Change Grants
The Positive Change Grant Program is designed to support community programs and projects that strengthen and improve the quality of life in Bartholomew County. The grant program is designed to support programs and initiatives that offer solutions for positive change for our community and its residents.

Targeted Grants
The Targeted Grants Program provides an opportunity once a year for not-for-profit organizations to submit a grant proposal through a Request for Proposals (RFP) Grants Program.

Opportunity Grants
The Opportunity Grants Program provides an opportunity for not-for-profit organizations to seek funding support for governance and effectiveness projects, staff training programs or urgent needs.

Detailed information regarding the restructured program as well as grant forms can be accessed in the Grant Application/Document Center.

 Grant a Wish 2012

We would like to thank everyone who made gifts to the Grant a Wish Program during the holiday season. This year Heritage Fund received gifts totaling $31,000 to the Grant a Wish Program from 140 individual and family donors. More than 233 wishes were granted, many as holiday gifts in honor of friends and family members.

The Heritage Fund’s Community Fund along with Elwood Staffing, MainSource Bank and Marguerite Rust provided matching funds which will result in more than $58,000 being distributed among the 38 Grant a Wish organizations.

Tracy Souza, President and CEO, spoke about the program, “Once again the generosity of our community was demonstrated by the response to the Grant a Wish program. Every non-profit organization that submitted a wish will receive grant funds and the Heritage Fund had the good problem of finding additional match money to ensure that all donor gifts were matched.”

Lincoln Centeral Neighborhood Family Center had a number of wishes granted. Randy Allman, Executive Director shared the following, “The Heritage Fund never ceases to impress! Its understanding of - and appreciation for - the non-profit community throughout Bartholomew County is simply amazing! The proactive nature of the Grant a Wish Program challenges all non-profits to think creatively when serving our clients. Individuals, families, children and adults have benefited from the visionary leadership of the Heritage Fund’s Board and staff!”

The generosity of Heritage Fund donors meant that:

• Children living in foster homes will have the opportunity for family outings to the zoo
• Children from less fortunate families will be involved in sports activities at Foundation for Youth and Columbus Parks and Rec.
• Cats and Dogs at the Humane Society will be fed and receive medications
• Children with Special Needs will attend the Very Special Arts Festival
• Love Chapel clients will receive gift cards to purchase meat.
• Simmons One Room School House can replace worn and damaged old fashioned toys.
• Aging and Community Services will provide meals to home bound seniors
• Sans Souci will provide blankets to clients to enable them to stay warm over the winter

The Grant a Wish program is now closed.  We encourage individuals and organizations interested in providing support for the changing needs within our community to make a donation to the Community Fund.  The Community Fund provided support for the Grant a Wish program aswell as funding support for a significant number of community programs.  Grant awards from the Community Fund during 2012 totaled more than $400,000.