No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted.

The Community Foundation's funds are used to provide support in perpetuity for agencies and organizations throughout Jennings County. Donors are at liberty to create a variety of funds to serve various charitable purposes. These funds include:

• Unrestricted Fund: The Foundation allocates funds to a variety of programs and services where the need is greatest. Unrestricted gifts provide the greatest flexibility in opportunities to address the ever-changing needs of our community.
• Field of Interest Fund: The donor may restrict their fund to one or more fields of interest such as education or health.
• Designated Fund: The donor decides exactly which organizations the fund will support.
• Donor Advised Fund: No specific beneficiary is identified, but the donor is consulted annually for recommendations.
• Scholarship Fund: Many donors create scholarship funds to enable students to pursue traditional higher education or vocational training programs. These funds can be established to honor or memorialize and individual or to serve a specific purpose that is important to the donor.

Naming opportunities for companies, families, organizations, or in memoriam are also available. In each type of fund, the Community Foundation and the donor enter into a legally binding gift agreement to ensure that the donor's exact wishes are carried out. A grants committee, well versed in the needs of the community, selects recipients when the donor does not specify one.

It is extremely easy to create an endowment fund. The necessary paperwork is straightforward and can be completed quickly. The Jennings County Community Foundation staff is always available to assist you. Our resources are available to you without cost or obligation.

Currently, our guidelines require a minimum of $2,500 to create an endowment fund. However, you may begin a fund with an initial donation in any amount, and you have two years to bring your total to the minimum $2,500. Funds may be added at any time, in any amount. Many individuals make donations in honor of anniversaries, birthdays, or other significant events or special occasions.

Gifts may take the form of cash, bequests, life insurance, private foundation transfers, life income, trusts, and appreciated property such as stocks, bonds, and real and personal property.

To set up a fund, please contact our staff. They are ready to assist you with options that best suit your charitable needs.

The Jennings County Community Foundation holds over 200 funds in trust with current assets totaling more than $6 million dollars. A list of our current funds may be viewed below.