Moments in Philanthropy :: July 2011
In This Issue
The River Food Pantry Founders Receive National Recognition
How to Love a Library Forever
Gifts of Cash, Stock, Real Estate...and Mineral Interests
Zoo Centennial Gift Now in Process - Stop in to Watch
A Journey of Education, a Journey of Understanding - Building Schools in Afghanistan
The River Food Pantry Founders Receive National Recognition
Andy and Jenny Czerkas, founders of The River food pantry in Madison, received the nation’s highest honor for public service: the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Award at the Jefferson Awards in Washington, D.C. on June 21 for the extraordinary and selfless volunteer work they have done in their community.
Known as “the Nobel Prize for public service,” the Jefferson Awards recognize unsung community-based volunteers and others who have dedicated the better part of their lives to public service and enriching their communities.
Located in a warehouse near the Dane County Airport, The River is Dane County’s busiest food pantry. Jenny and Andy feed about 500 families a week and distribute over one million pounds of food a year. For every dollar that is donated, over 99 cents goes toward food. The River also distributes free groceries, clothing, and household items to anyone who comes for help. Jenny and Andy provide a warm nurturing atmosphere where everyone is supported in finding the care they need and are given the opportunity to share what they have with others. Friday night meals feel like the best community potluck, with laughter, live music, and camaraderie all around.
In 2009, MCF awarded The River $15,000 for commercial refrigeration and $1,000 for a Community Car membership. When MCF facilitated a $10,000 anonymous gift to The River to create a matching fund to raise money for a new truck when the old one died, River donors quickly rallied and the match was made within two weeks (see MCF January 2011 eNews story, "Helping Them keep on Truckin'"). Other MCF fundholders have also forwarded generous distributions to The River.
To see WKOW coverage of the award ceremony, click here.
To learn more about The River and how it serves Dane County, visit their website here.
How to Love a Library Forever
A couple, who wished to remain anonymous, loved their neighborhood library. In a Library Friends Group newsletter they read about how Charitable Gift Annuities could benefit them every month and go on to benefit their favorite library after their deaths. They came to MCF to set up a joint Charitable Gift Annuity and found that the format fit their needs very well. So well, in fact, that they set up multiple CGAs over the years, sometimes using cash, sometimes using highly appreciated stocks that were not producing income, but when put into a CGA would produce an income stream for the rest of their lives. Upon the wife’s death this spring the remaining balances were turned into an endowment for one of Madison’s Branch Libraries.
“Library Branch Endowments fill the crucial need for funding programs, additional staffing and equipment procurement that cannot be part of a standard budget,” said Jennifer Collins, Madison Public Library Foundation Executive Director. “We are grateful for the generosity and thoughtfulness of this couple. This unrestricted, planned gift is a beautiful way for someone who loved libraries to have made a significant contribution.”
The following is from the American Council on Gift Annuities:
“Most gift annuity donors are retired, want to increase their cash flow, seek the security of guaranteed payments, and would like to save taxes. A charitable gift annuity could be right for people in any of the following circumstances:
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The interest rates on their CDs and other fixed-income investments have declined, and they would like to increase their cash flow.
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They own appreciated stock or mutual fund shares and have considered selling some of the shares and reinvesting the proceeds to generate more income, but they have hesitated because they don't want to pay tax on the capital gain.
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They would like to count on fixed payments, which are unaffected by interest rates and stock prices and which they cannot outlive.
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They want to assure continuation of payments to a surviving spouse without the delay of probate proceedings.
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They would like to provide financial assistance to an elderly parent, a sibling, or other person in a tax-advantaged manner.
If you would like to discuss whether a CGA might be an appropriate vehicle for income and contribution for you, contact Ann Casey, Vice President Finance and Planned Giving, at (608) 232-1763.
Gifts of Cash, Stock, Real Estate...and Mineral Interests
MCF was recently notified of a gift of mineral interests from a bequest received more than two decades ago. While most contributions to MCF come in the form of cash and appreciated stock, less liquid assets such as real estate and mineral rights may be accepted.
The Columbus Foundation recently posted a comprehensive article discussing the complexities of mineral rights as charitable gifts. That article can be accessed here.
If you have thought about using some of your more complex assets for charitable purposes, contact Ann Casey, Vice President Finance and Planned Giving, at (608) 232-1763.
Zoo Centennial Polar Bear Bench In Process
As part of a grant to support the Henry Vilas Zoo Centennial Celebration, MCF is sponsoring the collaborative creation of a commemorative mosaic bench in the shape of a polar bear to be decorated by the community under the guidance of artist Don Spencer. The art project offers community members of all ages the opportunity to have a hand in creating a legacy piece in honor of the Zoo’s 100th anniversary with a nod to the zoo’s commitment to conservation and education.
Located in the Visitor’s Center, the project is open to public participation from noon to 4 p.m. every week this summer under the supervision of Don Spencer and other assistants. Because sharp pieces of glass are involved, children must be accompanied by an adult.
To find out more about the Mosaic Polar Bear project, click here.
For more information on the Henry Vilas Zoo Centennial Celebration, click here.
A Journey of Education, A Journey of Understanding - Building Schools in Afghanistan
By Bobbi Dumas
Want an example of how fundholders with Madison Community Foundation are helping an individual make an enormous impact through their charitable funds? We’d like to introduce you
to Julia Bolz.
Less than ten years ago, Julia worked as an immigration attorney in Seattle, a partner in the prestigious firm Ryan, Swanson & Cleveland. After helping her sister successfully battle ovarian cancer, Julia asked herself some hard questions. “Mainly, I guess it occurred to me that perhaps I wouldn’t be satisfied if my own life ended suddenly. Would what I was currently doing be something I’d be happy to leave behind as my legacy?”
Julia, who was born and raised in Madison, invested in some soul-searching, which led to requesting a two-year sabbatical. “In 2002, I moved to Africa, intent on working on human rights and social justice issues, especially those that affected women and children.”
She made her way to Afghanistan. After the fall of the Taliban, this impoverished, oppressed country was struggling to overcome the effects of decades of war. “Under Taliban rule, only boys were allowed to go to school. However, given the state of the country, even most boys didn’t go. The majority of children in Afghanistan under the Taliban had no opportunities, no hope, and no education.” Julia heard from Afghan leaders that after basic needs were met, “What they most wanted was schools. They understood that to eliminate poverty, oppression and extremism, the children need education and the opportunities it brings.”
Since that time, Julia and her colleagues have built (or rebuilt) and supplied dozens of schools and two teacher-training centers, serving over 25,000 Afghan students and hundreds of teachers. Fellow development workers have been shot, killed, run off the road, kidnapped and killed in a plane crash. They are still in the field, however, because the Afghans they support (mostly women and girls) believe education is so important that they are literally putting their lives on the line every single day to teach or attend school. The results are not simply good but phenomenal.
“The way we build schools in Afghanistan is a reflection of our hope for our world,” Julia notes. “One reason we’ve been successful is that we build bridges of communication and trust in a community before we move into the actual stages of building schools.”
“Before a school is ever started, we spend hours and hours out in a community. We want the villagers to know who we are and we want to know about them. We don’t go into a community unless we’re invited. We are guests.”
Julia’s mission has shifted from simply building schools in Afghanistan to advocating education for the poor and marginalized across the globe. It is her goal that someday every child in the world will have the opportunity to go to school.
“Education is the cornerstone of change,” Julia says. “Everything builds from there. Without it, there are no opportunities, and no hope. With it, anything is possible.”
A number of fundholders of MCF proudly support Julia and her colleagues at Ayni Education International. Please visit www.aynieducation.com to learn even more about Julia, Ayni and all the remarkable, life-affirming work they are doing, and the hopes they have for the future.