Feb 19 2009
County Endowment Fund Program serves local community
IOWA CITY – The Community Foundations of Johnson County (CFJC) is leaving a lasting, positive impact and serving the community well.
Johnson County is one of 85 Iowa counties that does not have a state-issued gaming license. As part of the County Endowment Fund Program, countywide community foundations fund grants for charitable projects in all areas of community life from daycare and housing assistance programs to support for local food initiatives, community center expansions, river cleanup projects, leadership development and equipment upgrades for fire and police departments.
Details from the third year of the program are outlined in a report released by the Iowa Council of Foundations (ICoF) and the Iowa Gaming Association (IGA) titled “Building Iowa’s Communities Through Philanthropy: A Snapshot of the 2007-2008 County Endowment Fund Program.” The report offers an overview of the County Endowment Fund Program as well as specific grantmaking information for each of the counties involved. Information is based on reports submitted to ICoF and the Iowa Department of Economic Development by participating community foundations (beginning August 2008).
Mike Stoffregen, CFJC executive director and member of the ICoF Board of Directors, said the County Endowment Fund Program that is funded by a percentage of the state’s commercial casino gaming tax revenue helped grow the local nonprofit foundation serving Johnson County. “Iowa’s network of community foundations is helping communities today and tomorrow. In three years the assets of the state’s 85 community foundations’ assets grew from $16.6 million to more than $40 million.”
Highlights of the statewide report include:
• 1,731 grant awards distributed by participating community foundations
• Grant awards from the 85 counties totaled more than $5.1 million
• Generated 2,631 grant applications seeking funding of $13.5 million
• Grants awarded were classified as 47 percent capital-related with 53 percent focused on program aspects
The report also provides breakdowns of each of the 85 participating counties grant awards as well as general characteristics of each foundation.
Joan Be
nson, President of CFJC, says the County Endowment Fund Program serves as a catalyst to inspire other sources of lifetime and planned gifts in each of the counties. “The program promotes effective philanthropy and will continue to make a positive impact for years to come. It’s inspiring to see the positive impact that the fund program is making in our county and state.”
The publication is available at the Community Foundation of Johnson County office at 325 East Washington Street or online at www.IowaCommunityFoundations.org or www.iowagaming.org.
Founded in 2000, the Community Foundation of Johnson County is a permanent community endowment, built with gifts from local individuals, families, businesses and organizations committed to a strong future for Johnson County. CFJC has raised $5 million in assets, and distributed more than $1.015 million to charitable projects throughout Johnson County. For Good . . . For Ever.
