Door County Community Foundation
Oct 2015
Inspiring People to
Give Back to
Sustain and Advance the
Community We Love
DCCF LogoMath is a wonderful thing. You can talk all day long in an attempt to convince and cajole a person into doing what you want, but those are just words. They are arguments designed to persuade someone to believe something you cannot definitively prove. With math, however, there is no such ambiguity. Consider for a moment my new favorite equation:

$1,000 - $1,404 = $1,522

It was exactly 20 years ago this fall that I had my first interaction with a community foundation. As nonprofit corporations, like our own local Door County Community Foundation, they were created throughout our country, and across the world, primarily to serve as custodians of endowments. These endowment funds invest donated assets and annually make a distribution to support charitable work in their respective communities. Sometimes charities establish endowment funds exclusively for their own benefit. Other endowment funds are set up in the name of a family or business and support the charities and causes selected by the donor.

Imagine if 20 years ago I had the foresight to make a gift of $1,000 to an endowment fund at that community foundation of so many years ago. During these last two decades, that endowment fund would have paid out $1,404 to the charities of our community. Best of all, today the balance of that endowment fund would be $1,522.

Hence, with a $1,000 donation - $1,404 was distributed to charity during the last 20 years, equaling $1,522 in the endowment fund today.

This math works in endowment funds because of the power of compounding. It's the snowball effect that happens when the earnings on the endowment generate even more earnings into the future. That includes all the interest, dividends and capital gains that accumulate so the original gift increases more every year. In the example above, it assumed a compound annual growth rate of return of a very reasonable 7.5 percent during the last 20 years and an annual payout from the endowment fund of 5 percent to charity. Lest you think 7.5 percent per year is unrealistically high, note that the actual rate of return for the S&P 500 in the last 20 years was 9.8 percent.

Read the rest of "Endowment Funds: The Gift That Keeps Giving" in the Peninsula Pulse.

I hope you're enjoying the incredible explosion of fall colors that have come to Door County!
  Bret Bicoy   
Bret N. Bicoy, President & CEO
In This Issue
Scholarship Programs Urged to Accept Common Application
Making an Impact in Door County
Grants Awards to Boys & Girls Club and Peninsula Players
Endowments in Action: Friends of Peninsula State Park
100% of Profits of New Coffee Table Book go to Charity
2015 Guide to Endowment Now Available in DC Living
Give Door County Publications Available for Download

Board of Directors

Dave Eliot, Chair
Polly Alberts, Vice Chair
Dick Egan, Secretary
Richard Hauser, Treasurer
John Herlache, Past Chair
Bill Boettcher
Jacinda Duffin
Mike Felhofer 
Mark Jinkins
Linda Laarman
Frank Maxwell
Kaaren Northrop
Sally O'Brien
Jeff Ottum
Nancy Sargent 
Marcia Smith
Jane Stevenson

Upcoming Deadlines

Next Deadline: Thursday, 1/7

Next Deadline: Tuesday, 12/1
 
Next Deadline: Tuesday, 12/1

Donate Today!

Make an instant donation using a credit card to any of the Funds of the Door County Community Foundation. Give back online today!
 
Or contact us to talk about creating a Fund in your family's name - either today or in your estate plans.

Contact or Visit Us

CLICK HERE for directions to our office, our mailing address, phone and fax numbers, and staff email addresses.

For the latest news on charity in Door County, read our publications and previous issues of our Newsletter, like us on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter.
Scholarship Programs Urged to Accept Common Application
The Door County Scholarship Network is beginning the process of updating its database for the 2016 scholarship season.

The Scholarship Network the most comprehensive source for local scholarship information for students from Door County. Students of all ages can use this website to search for scholarships that match their background and educational plans. Whether you're pursuing a graduate degree, bachelor's degree, an associate's degree, or a technical certificate, this website is a great place to begin your search for a scholarship.

If you are a scholarship program that provides scholarships to students from any Door County high school, please download and complete the Scholarship Listing Form so we can list your scholarship program in our online database.

There is absolutely no cost for a scholarship program to be listed on this website. In addition, each individual scholarship program will continue to control its own assets, make its own decisions, and award scholarships in their own name. The Scholarship Network's searchable online database is designed to simplify the search process for the students.

We also encourage you to consider accepting the Door County Common Scholarship Application. This comprehensive form was created by local scholarship programs and guidance counselors. When your scholarship program agrees to accept this common form, you greatly simplify the scholarship application process for our local Door County students.

The Door County Common Scholarship Application is a comprehensive form that collects all the test scores, grades, work experience, volunteerism, etc. that are the same on every scholarship application. It also includes some standard essay questions - yet has ample space (Section 17) for you to ask customized questions of your applicants. If you're ready to accept the Door County Common Scholarship Application, just indicate so when you complete the Scholarship Listing Form (section 5). If you have questions, please contact Christine Henkel at (920) 746-1786.

Please note that a scholarship program does NOT have to accept the Common Application Form to be listed in this online searchable database. Scholarship programs that continue to use their own application form still are welcome to be listed in our database simply downloading and completing the Scholarship Listing Form. 

Making An Impact in Door County
The Door County Advocate recently published its 2015-2016 Impact Issue which highlights people and organizations doing good work for Door County. Featured in this year's issue is both the Door County Community Foundation and its President & CEO, Bret Bicoy.

Read the article, "Gift to Charity is Investment in County's Economy" and learn more about how the Community Foundation's role helping sustain and advance our community. 

In the article "10 Questions with People Who Impact Door County," you can read a bit about our President & CEO.
Grants Awarded to Boys & Girls Club and Peninsula Players
The Door County Community Foundation recently awarded The Boys and Girls Club of Door County a Sustainability Grant from the Children & Youth Fund and the John & Nell Herlache Community Impact Fund. This grant will support a partnership between the Boys and Girls Club of Door County and My Brother's Keeper, Inc. that will result in a male youth mentoring program for middle and high school age Club members. 

With the goal of helping young males overcome obstacles and experience healthy social and civic engagement, the program will conduct a bi-weekly series of group forum and individual mentoring sessions at the Club. This type of youth mentoring program has a proven track record of being extremely effective in enhancing life skills and it fits in well with the Boys and Girls Club goal of creating a safe environment that inspires academic and social skills development.

"This partnership between the Boys and Girls Club and My Brother's Keeper will provide an opportunity for Club members to receive the support and life skills necessary to achieve a future full of hope and opportunity," said Kaaren Northrop, board member of the Door County Community Foundation.

My Brother's Keeper is a nonprofit organization founded in 2003 by former Green Bay Packer player Harry Sydney to help boys and men deal with life's challenges. The mission is to provide a mentoring service that offers "Straight Talk - Sound Direction" to males who need support in gaining life skills.

The Boys and Girls Club of Door County opens its doors to every child who desires to walk through them.  The Club utilizes the BE GREAT! model, designed by the Boys & Girls Club of America, in order to meet the needs of Club members. With a safe environment and outcomes driven programming led by caring adults, Club members have the opportunity to: Be Inspired, Be Empowered, Be Impacted, Be Collaborative and Be Fun. The Club believes that this combination of values will enable each member to BE GREAT!

For more information regarding the Boys and Girls Club of Door County, please call (920) 746-5125 or visit www.bgcdoorcounty.org.

The Door County Community Foundation also awarded Peninsula Players a Sustainability Grant from the Arts Fund to support the program, The Play's the Thing. Components of the program involve offering free, offseason play readings to the public and also, in collaboration with Write On Door County, provides opportunities for students to receive play writing instruction that culminates in a play writing contest.

The free public play readings, held at various sites throughout Door County, provide the community with an enriching opportunity to hear plays read aloud that would not normally be produced at Peninsula Players. In addition, students have the unique experience to learn about different ways of writing and then practice applying that learning with the help of professional guidance.

"This creative partnership between the Peninsula Players and Write On Door County offers a variety of opportunities for our community to experience the exciting process of preparing a play, from writing to performance," said Marcia Smith, board member of the Door County Community Foundation.

Write On, Door County is a nonprofit agency with the mission to facilitate and promote writing in Door County by nurturing the work of writers, supporting readers and audiences, and developing opportunities that encourage broad participation. With the motto, "Everyone has a story to tell," Write On is located on nearly 40 acres of land in the heart of Door County which provides a beautiful backdrop that inspires and educates writers of all skill levels.

Peninsula Players Theatre is America's oldest professional resident summer theatre and Wisconsin's oldest professional theater company. The Players have produced more than 500 plays at the "Theatre in a Garden" and is one of only two remaining resident stock theaters producing beyond the east coast.

For more information regarding Peninsula Players, please call (920) 868-3287 or visit www.peninsulaplayers.com.

These are just a few of the grants awarded by the Family of Funds at the Door County Community Foundation. The Community Foundation has several granting programs that offer financial awards to charity from funds such as the Arts Fund, Children & Youth Fund, Green Fund, Health & Human Needs Fund, Education Fund, Historic Preservation Fund, Healthy Water Fund, and the Women's Fund.

For more information about the Community Foundation's services and various grant programs, please visit www.GiveDoorCounty.org.

Endowments in Action: Friends of Peninsula State Park
The Community Foundation is honored to administer the Friends of Peninsula State Park's For Now and for the Future Fund, Interpretive Nature Center Fund, and the Research Grant Fund.

Friends of Peninsula State Park supports the Park's mission: to protect the natural and scenic resources of the park and to provide compatible forms of outdoor recreation and education.

Over one million people visit the 3,776-acre park each year.  At least 14,000 participate in nature programs. FPSP has engaged in centennial activities (2009) and invasive species management. It has allocated matching grant funds for an open-air shelter at Nicolet Beach (2011-12 project), bought ski trail grooming equipment, and purchased archival supplies. FPSP manages merchandise sales, with proceeds primarily funding the wages of the summer naturalist and invasive species coordinator. Friends have also supported program presenters such as Bat Conservation of Wisconsin.

FPSP provides critical support for Peninsula State Park, a premier property within the Wisconsin State Park System and a gateway to other Door County heritage sites.

Please consider incorporating gift to this endowment in your estate plans. Speak with your attorney, accountant or other estate planning professional. Or contact the Community Foundation and we'd be glad to help facilitate your generosity.

Many charities entrust the administration of their endowment funds to the Community Foundation. It's a safe and responsible way to manage endowed gifts, long-term assets or operational reserves.

 The non-profit community also counts on the Community Foundation's planned giving expertise to facilitate gifts into their endowments. By aggregating these assets under the umbrella of the Community Foundation, economies of scale allow for a far more diversified investment portfolio and lower investment fees than any of the charities could achieve on their own.

100% of Profits of New Coffee Table Book go to Charity

"This book is all about the beauty and unexpected treasures of Sturgeon Bay, an historic and vital part of Door County. Those who have spent any amount of time here in the Door understand how special this part of the world can be. And one of the ways we can all maintain the magic of this unique destination is to contribute our time and resources to keep Door County special."

 
So begins the introduction to a beautiful book celebrating the Secret Treasures of Door County. This first of what we hope will be a series of books is focused on Sturgeon Bay. From bed and breakfasts, to the arts, to remarkable scenery, author and photographer Tom Jordan has captured the beauty and wonder of Sturgeon Bay. 
 
Jordan's 191 page book covers Sturgeon Bay's rich maritime and shipbuilding history, music, theater, artisans, agriculture, fishing, shops, and perhaps most importantly, the people behind the pictures. 

Jordan is an international award-winning advertising writer and former Chairman and Chief Creative Officer of Hoffman York Advertising. This book is a labor of love as he is donating 100% of his profits to the Community Foundation to be granted out to the charities of Door County.

Secret Treasures of Door County is available at several locations in Door County and can be purchased online. Visit the Community Foundation's website for more information.

 

2015 Guide to Endowments Now Available in Door County Living

The Door County Community Foundation's 2015 Guide to Endowments is now available on racks and newstands all across Door County. This year it has been incorporated into nearly 40,000 copies of the 2015 Philanthropy Issue of Door County Living.

 

The mission of the Door County Community Foundation is to inspire people to give back to sustain and advance the community we love. We do that by serving as a conduit for giving. We're a charity whose purpose is to make giving simpler, easier, and more tax efficient so you can be as generous as possible to the charities and causes you care about.

 

The Community Foundation has published the Guide to Endowments as a resource to help you with your giving.

The Guide will also be mailed this Spring to estate planning professionals across the entire State of Wisconsin. 

 

To download your own copy of the 2015 Guide to Endowments, visit GiveDoorCounty.org.

For more information about giving in Door County, or to learn how you can incorporate a gift to any of these Endowment Funds in your estate plans, speak with your estate planning professional or contact us at the Community Foundation. Help us inspire people to give back to sustain and advance the community we love.

 
Give Door County Publications Available for Download
The Community Foundation produces several publications and information sheets to help you craft a strategy to give back in the most effective - and tax efficient - way possible. Those documents are now available for anyone to download from GiveDoorCounty.org. Give Door County

You'll find publications like our our Guide to Endowments which highlights different charities so families have options to consider when giving back - either today or through their estate plans.

You can download an Introductory Brochure that explains the most popular charitable Funds at the Community Foundation - along with information sheets for Donor Advised Funds, Discretionary Funds, Scholarship Funds and more.

If you'd like a hard copy of any of these documents, just contact us and and we'd be glad to send them to you. And if you're an attorney, accountant, investment adviser, or trust officer, we'll send a supply of Guides, Introductory Brochures, or other materials (and display holders) for use in your office. Just contact us at the Community Foundation.

This is just another way the Community Foundation is encouraging people to give back to sustain the community we love!

 

The Door County Community Foundation is a catalyst, building and strengthening community by convening groups of people and organizations that want to make a difference in our world. We make it possible for a wide range of donors to meet present and future needs by creating charitable funds without incurring the costs of starting and administering a private foundation. The Door County Community Foundation was founded in 1999 and is governed by a local volunteer Board of Directors.


Inspiring People to Give Back to Sustain and Advance the Community We Love.
www.GiveDoorCounty.org    (920) 746-1786