You want to help.
You want to give and make an overwhelming impact to the lives of the people in your communities.
But there are so many needs and programs, and so many nonprofits doing great work. You can be left asking,
“Who needs what? Who’s doing what?
How can I best give to make Weld County a better place to live?”
The Weld Community Foundation can be your guide.
We know the lay of the land. We are local and relational. We are about building your philanthropy, not an institution’s assets. Integrity and stewardship are values we take seriously.
When you set up a charitable fund (to be spent down or permanently
endowed) it provides your community with the resources to offer
grants/scholarships/support for decades to come. This initial gift has the
additional benefit of being tax-deductible.
Once established, the administration that comes with the fund, things like overseeing its endowment returns and getting grants/scholarships awarded and allocated, is handled by the Foundation. You get to watch the good spread from your contribution and embrace a unique joy that comes from great generosity.
Schedule an appointment with us. We’ll take our time and perfectly tailor a charitable fund just for you; and then execute the plan together.
Through your gifts, needs will be met, problems solved, nonprofits will have the tools they need, students will get a higher education. And we will be living in a generous, thriving community, full of opportunity…
…all because you helped.
If you are interested in starting a fund with cash, stock, real estate or other assets, give us a call. Our friendly office would love to schedule a no-pressure meeting with you. Ask for the Foundation’s President and CEO, Tim Coons, at 970-304-9970.
The Foundation will help connect your passions and interests to the local charities and causes crucial to Weld County and beyond. We’ll put together a plan and tailor a charitable fund that personally fits you; one that you can be excited about!
The Foundation will take on the work of stewarding your gift while you get to embrace the unique joy that comes from making your generous legacy a reality.
The Foundation offers several types of funds to accomplish a variety of charitable goals, many examples of which can be seen below. A new, named fund can be established with a total gift of $20,000 ($50,000 for scholarship funds). There are seed funding options for certain fund types. Most funds are endowed to take advantage of the Foundation’s large, diversified pool and investment strategy.
Would you like more information about charitable funds? Here is a helpful flow chart (pdf) of the types of charitable funds out there.
Download Charitable Funds Flow-Chart
And below is a menu of definitions. Just click on what you’re interested in learning more about.
Also, it should be noted that the Foundation accepts both permanent and non-permanent funds. Permanent funds are invested, and only income is made available for grantmaking. The principal is not spent, but retained for growth of the fund. Non-permanent funds generally provide grant support from fund assets as well as income and can be disbursed upon request.
When a donor sets up a Community Fund (unrestricted), it means the Board of Directors at the Foundation can decide how to best allocate the money. This provides flexibility when responding to our community’s most pressing needs, both today and tomorrow. Earnings can be used to meet the ever-changing challenges that arise.
For this fund-type, the advisor (one or more persons) recommends grants to charitable organizations or projects. The donor is very involved at this level of philanthropy.
Individuals, families, and businesses may be especially interested in a Donor-Advised Fund if:
A Designated Fund may be established by a donor or an organization to benefit one or more specific charities. Examples include providing ongoing funding for a senior center, museum, church, or nonprofit organization.
When a nonprofit is ready to develop deep roots, they can choose this fund option.
An Agency Fund may be established by a charitable organization to provide a stream of revenue, fulfilling its mission well into the future. The Community Foundation staff can help develop planned giving programs and assist with investment management and administrative details.
A scholarship fund is an incredible way to invest in your community’s future. When a donor sets one up, a door is opened for students to reach their greatest potential.
The Community Foundation has a robust scholarships’ program, several years strong, and stewards these gifts with expertise you can trust.
This fund-type can have two approaches.
It can target your gift to address needs in an important area of community life. Examples include youth, women in leadership, or the arts.
The Community Foundation will use your gift to make grants in the field of interest of your choice, navigating the various ways your field can best be enriched.
A Field of Interest Fund can also be for a geographical location. For example, the Fort Lupton Community Foundation and Windsor Community Foundation are both Field of Interest funds held at the Foundation.
This simply means “the beginning of a fund.”
Many of the types of funds described here, like a donor-advised or designated, may be established as a Seed Fund starting with a donation of $4,000.
This provides an opportunity for people or organizations that do not have a large amount of capital to build their fund over a number of years. The Foundation would be excited to explore this option with you.
The Impact Fund is the Weld Community Foundation’s Unrestricted Fund which simply means it is used for immediate needs that arise in Weld County or to resource special needs at the Foundation. The Board of Directors steward this fund and use it to truly best “impact” Weld County for the constantly changing dynamic of this community.
The Community Foundation may act as a fiscal sponsor for a project or group that does not have its own tax-exempt status. Funds of this type allow community-minded individuals or organizations who have developed community-focused projects to meet charitable needs in the community and the ability to seek grants and solicit tax-deductible donations under the Community Foundation’s tax-exempt status.
Contact us if you would like more information about becoming a sponsored project.
We welcome gifts of cash, which includes checks and online gifts using a credit or debit card, but we also encourage donors to consider making gifts of appreciated assets. These could be securities, such as stocks and bonds or mutual funds. We also accept gifts from retirement funds, including charitable rollover gifts to meet required minimum distributions. Plus, you can name Weld Community Foundation as a beneficiary (or secondary beneficiary) of your retirement fund, your life insurance policy or your bank or brokerage account. Be sure to designate Weld Community Foundation as the beneficiary or payee and note the desired fund name. The Foundation also now accepts gifts of cryptocurrency.
Some gifts will need reviewing before we can accept them. This includes gifts of closely held stock, life insurance policies that are not fully paid policies, and real property, which should have a minimum value of $100,000 after sale and reasonably be sold within six months. We can also consider gifts of charitable remainder trusts or charitable lead trusts, retained life tenancy in a residence, ranch, or farm or bargain sales.
Leave a gift in your estate to Weld Community Foundation and you’re welcomed into our Centennial Society!
