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“Our mission is to get the necessary resources into the hands of
those dedicated people working in the trenches, making their
communities better places to live and work.” |
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Foundations, per se, are not providers of direct service. Our
mission is to get the necessary resources into the hands of those
dedicated people working in the trenches, making their communities
better places to live and work. Each year, I have used the annual
report to update the readers on what communities are doing to build
their endowment funds in preparation for the future needs of their
communities. This year, as we celebrate the 30th Anniversary of the
North Dakota Community Foundation, I thought I would use this
opportunity to tell you about a few of the projects that communities
have funded through their endowments. After all, this is the whole
purpose of the Foundation. |
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The community of Richardton was one of the first communities to
establish an endowment fund. Using seed money from the Otto Bremer
Foundation, the Richardton Community Endowment Fund began in 1981.
Since that time, they have made 197 grants totaling $121,698.40. In
2006, the Advisory Board awarded $8,400 to nine organizations
including $2,215 to the Richardton Health Center for a medication
cart, $900 to the Richardton Park District for youth baseball, $325
to replace flags at the Veterans Memorial and $1,130 to the City of
Richardton to purchase a fuel tank and lawnmower. The Richardton
Community Endowment Fund has been so successful largely because of
the wide spread community support for the Fund. Each year, the
Richardton Community Endowment Fund Advisory Board launches an
annual fund drive to build their Foundation. From this small
community, averages of 150 individual gifts are received each year.
That money is then matched dollar for dollar up to $10,000 by the
Otto Bremer Foundation. This truly exemplifies the “community” of a
community foundation. |
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Moving north and east just a bit takes us to the community of Minot.
They, too, were created in 1981 with the help of the Otto Bremer
Foundation. This community boasts an impressive $283, 650.20 in
grants awarded! Over 187 projects have been funded through the Minot
Community Endowment Fund. Some of the grants awarded in 2006 include
$5000 to the Minot YMCA for the “Building for the Generations”
program, $3000 to purchase materials for the Junior Achievement
program, $2000 to the Commission on Aging for home delivered meals,
$2000 to Our Lady of Grace Food Pantry to purchase a walk-in
freezer, $500 to the International Music Camp to help fund a guest
musician/conductor and $500 to the Mouse River Players Community
Theater, just to name a few. |
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The North Dakota Community Foundation has a presence from border to
border and we now take you to the southern border and the community
of Ellendale. The Ellendale Area Community Foundation began in 1998
with a very generous gift from Mr. Frank Larson. Mr. Larson donated
$100,000 and challenged the community to raise a matching amount to
get the Foundation off the ground. The community of Ellendale took
up that challenge and now has a fund valued at over $315,000! This
feisty community has used their grant money to fund a wide variety
of projects ranging from purchasing an automatic handicap door for
the Prince of Peace Care Center to a walk-in tub system for
Benedictine Living Communities to support for the Ellendale Fire
Protection District to youth soccer, youth baseball and swimming. I
am amazed each year at the ingenuity of this small, yet bustling
community. The “can do” spirit is alive and well in south central
North Dakota! |
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Lastly, I move further east to Carrington. A 1980 product of Otto
Bremer Foundation generosity, the Carrington Community Endowment
Fund holds the distinction of being the very first community fund
established with the North Dakota Community Foundation. In the past
26 years, the Carrington Community Endowment Fund has distributed
229 grants totaling over $142,000! Projects such as $500 for the
Carrington City Library for their summer reading program and $2500
for library automation, $3250 to the Carrington Youth Center for the
bowling alley and fine arts theatre project, $2000 for youth
baseball equipment and coaching costs, $5000 to the Tri County
Recreation Project for the recreation trail and the list goes on and
on. |
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The story on the good things these communities are accomplishing is
just beginning. Each year, endowment funds increase the value of
their communities by creating a resource for future generations. |
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Across the state, grants of all sizes are making huge impacts in
their respective communities. Many of these projects would not be
possible were it not for the endowment funds built by those
visionaries so many years ago. New communities are getting on the
bandwagon each year as they realize the need and the potential for
this kind of community investment. Had we had this foresight decades
ago, can you imagine the resource we would have today? |
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 To learn how you can be a
part of creating a community foundation for your area, please
contact Amy Warnke at 701-795-1531 or e-mail me at
amy@ndcf.net.
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