During the week of Nov. 12 to 18, the Tama County Community Foundation (TCCF) joins more the 795 other community foundations across the country for Community Foundation Week to raise awareness and bring individuals and families, nonprofits, and communities together.

In 2005, a group of local individuals established the TCCF, an affiliate of the Community Foundation of Northeast Iowa (CFNEIA), to allow Tama County to benefit from State of Iowa legislation that distributes a percentage of gaming revenues to counties without a state issued gaming license and are affiliated with a community foundation meeting national standards for U.S. community foundations, like CFNEIA.

“Community Foundations impact lives, solve problems and improve futures,” said Kaye Englin, CFNEIA President and CEO. “The Tama County Community Foundation is connecting generous, community minded people to non-profits who are at the heart of doing good in Tama County, and is making grants to innovative and effective local projects crucial to creating stronger communities.”

Members of the TCCF governing committee currently include Greg Pettiecord (Chair), Emily Babinat, Sue Carnahan, Ardene Cross, Kathy Fattig, Mandy Gehring, Darvin Graham, Angie Jacobs, Willie Karsjen, Sandi Kopriva, Rick Krug, John Lloyd, Trudi Scott, Brian Sokol, Raea Struve, Sandy Supianoski, and Ellen Young.

To date, TCCF has granted over $1.5 million to nonprofit projects impacting nearly every aspect of life in communities, including art and culture, education, environment, health, historic preservation, human service, and general community betterment. In 2018 alone, the local governing committee awarded 53 grants totaling $125,028 to projects in these areas.

By connecting community-minded people to nonprofits who are at the heart of doing good in local communities, the Tama County Community Foundation continues to grow financially, increasing its impact through grant making. The TCCF currently holds over $1,920,000 in assets. A majority of these are endowed gifts, which is the base of the community foundation philosophy. Endowments allow gifts to continue on in perpetuity, providing a financial safety net for the community. These dollars are invested and professionally managed to achieve long-term growth by balancing principal protection with distributions to support local nonprofit organizations. Making an endowed gift with the Community Foundation means it will last forever.

Gifts to the Community Foundation also offer unique tax benefits to those who want to give where they live. Gifts to endowed funds with the Tama County Community Foundation supporting Iowa charitable causes are eligible for the Endow Iowa 25% state tax credit. This is in addition to federal tax credits.

The Endow Iowa Tax Credit program was launched in 2004 and since then has leveraged over $263 million in endowment gifts to support Iowa communities and charitable causes. This program has made nearly $62 million in tax credits available to Iowans who contribute to an endowed fund at an accredited community foundation in the state. For the past five years, the annual tax credit limit has been $6 million per calendar year and each year every tax credit has been distributed. The Endow Iowa Tax Credit is awarded on a first-come, first-served basis and is utilized by a wide range of donors. Credits can be claimed by individuals, businesses, or financial institutions.

“The Community Foundation is a great way to get involved locally and be part of an organization that looks not only at what is needed today, but what can we do to support our communities forever,” said Greg Pettiecord, TCCF governing committee chair. “There is incredible potential that can be realized by combining people’s generosity and love of where they live, whether that’s through monetary gifts or giving of your time and talents as a volunteer, to create impacts that will build stronger, more vibrant communities here in our county.”

To learn more about the Tama County Community Foundation and CFNEIA, visit their website (www.cfneia.org) or contact Terry Gaumer, CAP, affiliate development director at 319-243-1354 or tgaumer@cfneia.org.

Launched in 1989 through a proclamation by former president George H.W. Bush, the first Community Foundation Week included a congressional briefing about the work of community foundations throughout America and their collaborative approach to working with the public, private, and nonprofit sectors to address community problems. Today, community foundations represent one of the fastest-growing forms of philanthropy. Every state in the United States is home to at least one community foundation-large and small, urban, and rural-working to advance solutions on a wide range of social issues.

The Tama County Community Foundation is a local organization making grants to organizations creating a stronger and more vibrant quality of life in Tama County and helps people establish permanent funds for the causes they care about in their community. The Tama County Community Foundation is an affiliate of the Community Foundation of Northeast Iowa, a nonprofit committed to creating long-term impact in 20 counties in Iowa. For more information, contact 319-287-9106 or visit www.cfneia.org. CFNEIA is confirmed in compliance with National Standards for U.S. Community Foundations.