Donor Advised Funds for Businesses

Gaining a higher return on your company’s charitable investments.

Opening a Donor Advised Fund allows your business to make a gift to your Community Foundation, then remain actively involved in suggesting uses for your gift.

How it works:

• Your company and/or employees make gifts to your Community Foundation — you can give cash, appreciated stocks, real estate, or other assets.
• We set up a special fund in your company’s name.
• Your company receives tax benefits in the year your gift is made.
• You (or a team of employees) can recommend uses for the fund — working with our professional program staff to support the causes and organizations you care about most.
• Your recommendations are presented to our Community Foundation board for approval.
• We handle all the administrative details and issue grants to charities in the name of the fund you establish (if you prefer, grants can be made anonymously).
• Your gift can be placed into an endowment that is invested over time.

Earnings from your fund are used to make grants addressing community needs. Your gift — and all future earnings from your gift — is a permanent source of community capital, helping to do good work forever.

More benefits.
Donor Advised Funds provide a convenient, flexible way for your business to show it cares about its local community and build awareness about community needs. This type of fund can also strengthen employees’ relationships with one another and within the community by providing an enriching, shared giving experience.

A Donor Advised Fund is typically less costly and less time consuming to administer than other forms of philanthropic giving (such as a private foundation), but it still allows you to establish a charitable legacy in the name of your business and fulfill multiple charitable interests.

By working through your Community Foundation, you can choose to combine your gift with others to increase the impact in areas you or members of your organization care about most, your charitable gift qualifies you for maximum tax advantage under federal law, and you take advantage of the expertise of professional program staff and investment managers. Your business can establish a fund today and make grant recommendations now or in the future.