Community Foundation Honors Donors and Community Partners at 13th Annual Luncheon

The Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque (CFGD) celebrated a successful year of community impact with donors, nonprofit leaders and community partners at its 13th annual donor luncheon on Thursday, September 24 at the Dubuque Golf and Country Club.

The event celebrated many Foundation successes, including the expansion of the Dubuque Campaign for Grade-Level Reading to rural communities in Jackson County and the Dyersville area, and nearly $1.8 million in endowment payouts that will support immediate needs of Northeast Iowa nonprofits.

“The Community Foundation connects donors to causes they care about, helps local nonprofits to build capacity and provides community leadership to address local and regional challenges,” said Nancy Van Milligen. “This year, we are celebrating many successes made possible thanks to community members who support the foundation with gifts of time, talent and treasure.”

The Foundation also shared its annual report "Thanks to You" with the community. Northeast Iowa donors, nonprofits and businesses have created over 680 funds at the Foundation, growing total assets to more than $65 million. Last year alone, the Foundation made 2,061 grants totaling $5.4 million. CFGD also supports six affiliate foundations in the rural counties of Allamakee, Clayton, Delaware, Jackson and Jones as well as the Dyersville area. Together, these affiliates support 253 endowment funds totaling nearly $16 million.

The event honored several donors and supporters of philanthropy, including Dave and Liz Cushman, Howard and Dorothy McLean and Ruth Turnis. CFGD Board Chair Brian Kane also recognized leaders from the Foundation’s rural affiliate foundations.

Van Milligen also recognized three new Legacy Society inductees: Catherine Heinz, Jack Marlowe and Dr. Joseph and Teri Zuccaro. In 2013, the Foundation established the Legacy Society to honor donors who have made planned gifts from their estate to a fund at the Foundation.

New Endowment Society members were also recognized. These individuals, couples, families and businesses have established endowment funds and contributed $10,000 or more to those funds during their lifetimes. 

Guest speaker M.J. Smith, CFGD’s director of affiliate foundations, recognized the impact of foundation leaders and donors sharing time, talent and treasure all across the region. “Every day someone comes forth who has a vision for making their community better and offers gifts to support that vision,” said Smith. “We are in the business of inspiring givers and challenging caring Iowans to live generously, thereby making every community stronger.”

Community foundations are charitable organizations that administer funds to benefit their communities and improve the lives of people in their geographic region. Nonprofit organizations and community members can create endowment funds at CFGD to benefit charitable causes. These funds are invested and pay out five percent annually to the designated nonprofits, providing a reliable source of income to sustain organizations’ operations forever. Any earnings beyond the five percent are reinvested.

Gifts to endowment funds at the Community Foundation are eligible for the Endow Iowa 25 Percent State Tax Credit. Community members can contribute to more than 200 endowment funds established by nonprofits throughout Northeast Iowa, which provide sustainable sources of income for these essential community service organizations.