Community foundations have been fixtures in this country for over 100 years. In 1914 Frederick Goff, a Cleveland, Ohio, banker established the first community foundation, believing that a public, permanent endowment would benefit the Cleveland community for years to come. Since that time the idea has become firmly rooted and now there are over 900 independent community foundations nationwide with seven in Mississippi.
Here in Greenville, in 2012, a group of women who cared deeply about investing in and creating a stronger future for Washington County residents formed the Community Foundation of Washington County (CFWC). Lisa Percy, Betsy Dyer, Becky Tindall, Brenda Kretschmar, and Pattye Wilson each donated $100 to register the organization as a not-for-profit with the Secretary of State’s office. They believed that the way to increase charitable giving was to create a vehicle that made it easy for donors to give and provided multiple ways to donate. When the CFWC was formed, Washington County was the most populous area of the state that did not already have a community foundation.
They approached then Mayor Chuck Jordan with their idea and he was extremely enthusiastic and encouraging. In fact, when he was tragically diagnosed with terminal cancer, he directed that the proceeds of a gala he had begun to organize be used to help the Community Foundation. While he didn’t live to attend the gala, the $50,000 raised from the gala provided the seed money for CFWC. A board member secured a $50,000 matching grant from Entergy Corp., and the foundation was off the ground.
After acquiring their IRS 501(c)3 status, the group hired Terri Lane as the first Executive Director. The board expanded, and spent a period of time studying the unmet needs of the community as well as the various models of operating a community foundation.
The group decided to be a community foundation that did several things:
- Create a large endowed fund so that the CFWC could fund its own initiatives to fulfill unmet needs where funding was unavailable;
- Provide a 501(c)3 “umbrella” for groups raising money for charitable causes so that deductions to them would be tax-exempt, thereby increasing philanthropy in the area;
- Encourage donors and existing community organizations to create endowed funds, so that the proceeds of those funds could be used in the community in perpetuity, and the organizations would benefit from financial security.
Some of the first initiatives funded by the CFWC included:
- Funding and providing computer access for early childcare education workers to obtain their CDA (Child Development Associate) Certification, ensuring our youngest residents receive age-appropriate care and learning opportunities.
- Developing a comprehensive marketing and communications plan, including upgrading the Capp’s Technology Center’s on-line presence making it more accessible to potential students. Focusing on workforce development opportunities for Washington County residents, this effort increased the top-of-mind awareness of the career-based certifications and training courses available at the Capps Center resulted in a major increase in class enrollment.
- Partnering with Greater Greenville Housing and Revitalization Association to provide façade improvement grants for downtown businesses in Greenville. CFWC also provided similar grants for downtown Leland.
In addition, our Washington County Disaster Recovery Fund and South Delta Disaster Recovery Fund has been responsible for restoring and rebuilding countless homes in Washington, Sharkey, Issaquena and Humphreys Counties, totaling over $ in disbursements.
Also, the CFWC underwent a rigorous accreditation process to receive its Community Foundation National Standards Accreditation which it received in 2019. Only community foundations who not only exceed state and federal requirements but also maintain best practices in accountability and excellence.
CFWC was established to help individuals, families, and corporations make a positive impact on our community. As a public charity, we offer favorable tax treatment for gifts and a variety of giving methods to help people achieve their charitable goals. Our foundation is committed to serving donors, other non-profit organizations and Washington County as a whole.
We offer our donors many services and benefits and strive to ensure that donors receive the most benefit from their charitable contributions and that their philanthropic dollars are used to make the greatest impact on our community.
From a modest beginning, the Community Foundation of Washington County has now grown to assets of over $4 million. These funds are used to award scholarships and grants to a wide variety of community needs.
