Make an Impact

One of the most rewarding ways to make an impact locally is by donating to the Collier County Community Foundation. We rely on your financial contributions to continue addressing the community needs in our area for the long term. That means together we can help real people change their lives for the better.

Anyone Can Be a Philanthropist

Our staff of professionals makes it easy for you to choose the right way to meet your charitable goals. Together, we will work through some preliminary questions about how you envision your funds to be used.

We’ll help you determine:

  • How to make the biggest impact in your community.
  • When to give. Does an outright gift or a planned gift fit your goals?
  • What types of gifts you will use to establish the fund.
  • Whether you will want your fund restricted to a specific agency or field of interest.
  • Whether you wish to participate in grantmaking decisions.
  • What to name your fund.

When the time is right, we help you arrange to transfer assets to the foundation.

TYPES OF FUNDS

There are many funds available to help you achieve your giving goals. You can learn more about each option on the Types of Funds page.

Donor Advised Funds (DAFs) are a simple, powerful, and personal approach to giving. Our most popular and flexible type of fund, DAFs allow for anonymity and are a great alternative to a private foundation (click here to learn more). Donors receive an immediate tax deduction by contributing to a donor-advised fund, and distribute the money, which grows tax-free, to their chosen charity or charities over time. Donors may give grants locally, nationally or internationally to any qualified nonprofit organization.

Benefits of Donor Advised Funds

Impact– choose to create a permanently endowed long term impact or non-endowed immediate impact fund

Recognition- choose to make gifts publicly or anonymously

Flexibility- make grant recommendations to any qualified public charity wherever you choose to give

Support- when considering grant recommendations consult our experienced and knowledgeable Foundation staff

Online Access- check your fund balance or make grant recommendations on a secure site

Tax benefit- schedule gifts to the fund when most advantageous to you and take an immediate charitable tax deduction with no capital gains taxes on gifts of appreciated, long-term assets

Simplicity- alleviate administrative burdens, record keeping, or expenses of a private foundation

Capability- involve family members in your philanthropic giving

*IRAs’ annual disbursements may not be donated to a Donor Advised Fund.  Establishing a Designated Fund or a Designated Pass Through Fund may be a better option for this type of asset.  Contact us to learn more.

Click here for the Donor and Corporate Advised Fund Handbook.

Our Community Impact Fund allows us to respond quickly to our community’s needs and to address issues as they emerge. If you do not have a particular charitable field of interest and do not want to be involved in the details of grantmaking, donating to our unrestricted fund is a perfect choice.
If you have a particular philanthropic passion, but do not want to be involved in the details of grantmaking, consider donating to a field-of-interest fund. Field of interest funds focus your giving on a particular area of interest like education, healthcare, or affordable housing. Through our grants program, we will identify organizations that are having the greatest impact in the area of importance to you.
The Community Foundation distributes money from a designated fund to a specific nonprofit organization (or multiple organizations). Designated funds are a popular choice for individuals who are committed to providing sustainable, long-term funding for the charities they care about (wherever they are located), and may be established by a current gift, or a planned estate gift.
When companies, organizations, families or individuals establish a scholarship fund with us, they give deserving students the opportunity to pursue academic dreams. Establish a legacy, honor a loved one or give back to your community or your alma mater. We will work with you to create, establish criteria for, and administer your fund.
Nonprofit agencies establish these funds to build their “reserve” and ensure a long-term, dependable source of operating revenue. Our staff helps the agency with investment management and administrative details.
Click here for a list of agency funds owned and managed by the Community Foundation
Giving circles enable participants to make collective funding decisions and become more involved in the giving process than by simply writing a check to a favorite charity, all while having fun doing it. By donating time and/or money through their giving circle of choice, participants have a more meaningful giving experience.
Donors from all economic backgrounds can now make a significant and permanent contribution to the charity of their choice by starting a seedling fund. By investing as little as $1,000 and making annual contributions, you can build your tax-deductible contributions into a permanent endowment fund. When the Seedling Fund reaches $10,000, you can begin making grants to support your chosen charity or charities.
Any donor who wants to create a fund to provide long-term charitable support can establish an endowment fund. The body of the fund should grow over time even with grantmaking and inflation factored in. Plus, the asset allocation of this type of fund can include fewer liquid assets and earn a premium over publicly traded assets.

How does a donor’s endowment fund grow?

In 2008, H. Max and Letha L. Brown left a bequest of $2,028,227 to the Community Foundation of Collier County. Since then:

  • 96 grants have been issued from 2008 thru 2017, totaling: $769,207
  • Balance as of March 2018: $2,793,315

Your Partner for a Better Community

When you give to the Collier County Community Foundation, you’re ensuring your resources will be safeguarded by a trusted partner. We work hard to distribute funding to produce positive change in the community. Your dollars will make a difference locally with the expert guidance of our team. Learn more about the benefits of partnering with the foundation.

Contact Julie Howe Van Tongeren at 239.649.5000 or [email protected]