Through the Community Foundation of Warren County, a donor can create a personal philanthropic legacy tailored to his/her specific needs and interests. The fund may bear the name of the donor, a loved one, or it may remain anonymous. You may specify general or specific charitable purposes. Funds established during your years of employment can provide immediate tax advantages. Grants are awarded in the names of the donors’ funds to their designated charities.

You may choose from  the following eight fund types:

1. Unrestricted.  These funds are typically created by visionary philanthropists with broad charitable interests. They offer current and future trustees of the Foundation maximum flexibility to respond to changing needs of the community, emergencies and to support the creation of innovative responses to community problems. Approximately 48% of gifts to the Community Foundation are fully unrestricted or “Donor Advised” (see #4) and provide the Foundation with important flexibility.

Donors who create one of our seven other types during their lifetimes can, if they choose, specify that their named fund become unrestricted after their deaths.

2. Field of Interest.  This fund allows a donor to support a particular broad charitable cause, such as education, the arts, health, youth or the disabled. The Foundation then seeks out worthy projects to support within this defined field of interest. Donors who create field of interest funds during their lifetimes often enjoy participating in the process of identifying worthy projects.

3. Donor Designated.  These funds are normally created to perpetually benefit one or more  specific charities. Semi-annual grants will be made in the name of the fund for as long as the receiving organization remains in operation and is consistent with its original charitable purpose. If not, the Board may redirect distributions to a charitable interest reflecting the donor’s original intentions—“for good…forever.”

4. Donor Advised.  These funds are often an attractive alternative to the creation of a private foundation. Donors receive a tax deduction for the original, and any subsequent, gifts when made. Once the fund is established, the donors may designate deserving charities to benefit from fund income or, if desired, principal. Grants are then made, in the name of the donor’s fund, to the charities designated by the donor. Investments, paperwork and grant monitoring are all handled by the Foundation, with recognition flowing to the donor.

5. Geographic.  Donors whose charitable interests are limited to a particular geographic area within Warren County can establish geographically restricted funds to benefit those townships or communities.

6. Scholarships.  The Community Foundation of Warren County currently administers many different scholarships. These funds allow a donor to define a scholarship advisory committee and guidelines for candidate selection. The CFWC also has a standing Scholarship Committee, familiar with educational needs and requirements, which is available for this purpose. Scholarships can benefit a particular educational institution, field of study or be left to the discretion of the scholarship committee. Many individuals and professional advisors find the creation of a scholarship fund within a community foundation the simplest and most cost effective manner to fulfill the intentions of the donor.

7. Agency Endowments.  This type of fund is established when a non-profit organization agrees to transfer all, or part, of its endowment or assets to a self-designated fund within the Foundation. Individual donors can also establish agency endowments to benefit the charitable organizations of their choice.

8. Life Income and Other Planned Gifts.  Life income and other planned gifts create “win-win” opportunities for individuals and local charities. These may be created during one’s lifetime or by bequest. In most cases, the Foundation’s size, permanence, flexibility, and knowledge of local needs can provide value-added service to individuals considering this option.

Contact Robert A. Kaemmerer, Executive Director at the Foundation to answer your questions or to discuss establishing your legacy.  Call Robert at (814) 726-9553 or contact him by email at cfwc@westpa.net