Community Foundation Celebrates Giving Today and Touching Tomorrow at Ninth Annual Meeting

October 07, 2011    |   Categories: News
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The event included individual stories from the network of individuals, couples, families, circles, boards, and communities that comprise the foundation and its reach into Northeast Iowa.

Foundation President and CEO Nancy Van Milligen told attendees, “By serving local donors, making grants to nonprofits, and providing community leadership, the Community Foundation is helping our community to give today and touch tomorrow. We are also proud to share our annual report with the community. In serving donors, we now hold 344 funds and $29.2 million in assets. As grantmakers, we made 831 awards to nonprofits this past fiscal year.”

The event honored several donors and supporters of philanthropy, including: Paula Connors; Dale Goodman and Camp Ewalu; Mike and Judy McCoy; Thelma Schlueter; the Wertzberger Family; and Kristin Woodward and her sons T.J. and Austin.

Endowed gifts to Community Foundations are eligible for Endow Iowa, the 25% state tax credit, and the foundation holds 126 nonprofit endowments for Dubuque, Clayton, Allamakee, and Delaware Counties.

Community Foundation Board President Phil Ruppel announced Community Impact grants totaling $30,604 to the following nonprofits and programs:

Multicultural Family Center - $5,000 to fund Future Talk 2012, a summer environmental education and service-learning program for at-risk youth 13-17 years old.

Iowa iJAG, Inc. - $5,000 to help iJAG continue its commitment to guaranteeing graduation among students in those communities in need. Funding will support programming to prevent 433 at-risk students from dropping out of high school.

Four Mounds Foundation - $5,000 to stabilize the historic but threatened 400 E. 22nd Street property in the Washington/Bee Branch Neighborhood and develop a feasibility and reuse plan for the structure through partnership with the City of Dubuque, Four Mounds Foundation, and Manasseh House/Operation Empower.

Riverview Center - $4,600 to train/empower more mentors and role models in our community with concrete strategies to foster healthy relationships and bolster self-esteem for our community's youth so children can nonviolently cope with personal stress and hostile situations.

Dubuque Art Center - $3,500 to support two new community initiatives, DubuqueYouth.com and DubuqueCulture.com, in order increase awareness of and participation in youth programs and cultural opportunities in and around Dubuque.

Galena Art and Recreation Center - $2,500 to provide community art opportunities by offering a creative environment for children to explore new ideas and cultures, develop skills, and build self-esteem through creating and learning about art.

Northeast Iowa Community College Foundation - $1,500 to establish an adult literacy student support fund that will provide testing and program fee waivers, books, supplies, and additional support to serve the educational needs and goals of Dubuque County residents who seek General Educational Development or English as a Second Language services.

Dubuque County Historical Society - $1,238 for Piloting Educational Outreach Programs at Comiskey Park that will support six free out-of-school time programs for North End/Washington Neighborhood children during the summer of 2012.

St. Luke's United Methodist Church - $1,200 to create opportunities of empowerment for individuals to produce food that would increase financial stability, promote a healthier lifestyle, foster neighborhood community pride, encourage neighborhood transformation, and provide neighborhood collaboration.

The Delaware, Dubuque, and Jackson County Regional Transit Authority - $1,066 to distribute more than 2,000 transportation resource guides to different agencies working with at-risk populations in Dubuque, Delaware, and Jackson Counties to increase access and ridership.