OTHER WAYS WE CAN HELP

Transfer Your Foundation Into Ours

You are trustee of a private foundation. A number of issues make you concerned about the future of the organization. Increasing tax regulations and decreasing benefits are also proving a major frustration.

By transferring your foundation into ours, you can be assured that good, intelligent grant making will continue in the name of your foundation for generations to come. Because we are a public charity, the excise taxes levied against private foundations are no longer applicable. We also take care of all the paperwork required by the government. What you are left with is the comfort of knowing that your foundation's work will continue in perpetuity as intended.

Partial Transfer of Your Private Foundation's Income

Again, you are a trustee of a private foundation, but are not ready to transfer all the foundation's assets into the Community Foundation. You would, however, like to begin a relationship.

You set up a Fund at the Gainesville Community Foundation, most likely in the name of your organization, and arrange for part or all of the year's current income to be contributed to your Fund. This arrangement can continue indefinitely, allowing the trustees a chance to become familiar with us until they are ready to take full advantage of the Community Foundation's services.

Other Ways We Can Help Foundations

A private or family foundation with a small or nonexistent staff may have difficulty administering a full grantmaking program.

Again, the combined expertise of the Foundation's Board of Directors can prove to be an invaluable asset to your foundation. With our assistance in identifying important community needs and carefully screening nonprofit recipients, you can be certain that your grants will have the kind of impact originally envisioned.

How We Can Help Corporations

Supporting standard charities, being a good corporate citizen, and giving to projects in which top corporate officers are involved are all straightforward tasks to accomplish. Unfortunately, the blizzard of appeals you receive from all the other charities makes a thoughtful corporation giving program seem unattainable.

We can help make things more manageable. You split your corporate giving in two. One portion stays with the corporation to cover those things you know you must fund. The other portion is transferred to a fund you create in the Community Foundation. We sift through the requests you receive, and will develop a giving program that will reflect and credit the corporation. We can be especially helpful with corporate scholarship programs. We help identify recipients, track their progress in school, and take care of all IRS requirements.

Help for Organizations Closing Their Doors

You are on the board of a charitable organization with a problem. Costs are outrunning income, and there is little prospect for relief. It would be logical to just close up shop, but there are still some assets, perhaps a building, maybe some restricted funds. Also, there is still a commitment from board members for the type of service you have offered all these years.

You can keep the mission of your agency alive when you create a new fund at the Community Foundation. You apply to the courts for permission to liquidate the assets and transfer them to the fund. You specify that grants will be used only for your particular field of service. In this way, good works can continue in your agency's name.

How We Can Help Professional Advisors

You are an attorney, accountant, broker, financial planner, trust officer, or insurance professional. You want to provide the best possible advice to clients who have philanthropic interests. Sometimes you need good counsel, access to flexible instruments, and even special insight into the charitable organizations in your community.

The Community Foundation, drawing on the resources of its colleague foundations and the National Council on Foundations, can assist you and your clients. We can offer counsel on giving instruments and options for funding such instruments. We can provide illustrations and projections. We can offer technical assistance and review of necessary documents. We can also provide information and guidance regarding the community's charitable needs. All these services are provided on a confidential basis and at no cost to the donor or estate planning professional.

"Making support available to nonprofit organizations to achieve their goals is a fundamental objective of community foundations," says Terry Caskey, a board member. "Gifts are made through the community foundation to help nonprofits, not just to the community foundation."