COMMUNITY REPORT2013STRENGTHENING LOCAL PHILANTHROPY TO SUPPORT HEALTHY COMMUNITIES.

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246 E. Main Street, Suite 101

Galesburg, IL 61401

www.ahealthycommunity.org

This year at the Galesburg Community Foundation we celebrate our 10-year anniversary. During these 10 years, the Community Foundation has had the opportunity to impact Knox and Warren Counties by providing more than $2 million to nonprofits and programs aimed at making our communities healthier. Since our inception we have grown to a $24 million organization. This growth is due to generous donors who understand the power philanthropy has in our communities. A Foundation with ample assets has the ability to provide more sustainable and substantial grants—meaning we can better serve nonprofits making our communities healthier.

Our goal is to ensure all members of our communities are connected to the issues and causes they care about most. At the Community Foundation we believe everyone is a philanthropist and has the ability to make a significant impact. Whether giving time, talent or treasure, everyone has the ability to contribute and inspire change. We believe that people

who are connected to a cause or nonprofit they care about make more impactful gifts and provide nonprofits with greater resources, allowing them to better fulfill their mission.

As we look toward the future and engage in conversations about furthering the health of our communities, one of our goals is to ensure we are making an even bigger impact—one that will not only create immediate change but will also be made stronger with collaboration and sustainable resources. To create lasting change we strongly believe in an approach called collective impact. Collective impact allows communities to address multiple complex issues by developing a common agenda and defining core focus areas. Nonprofits, businesses, community leaders and volunteers then all work together to identify strategies that lead to solutions. Collective impact reduces the amount of time and resources that are duplicated and therefore wasted. This approach also helps community members build stronger and more diverse relationships, ultimately making them more invested in our communities.

Joshua D. GibbExecutive Director

CELEBRATING 10 YEARS OF IMPACT.

Carl NixonChairman

Two critical components of the Community Foundation, endowment and fund creation, aid the work of collective impact and preserve good works for our communities for many years to come. Last year we were privileged to have many productive conversations that resulted in noticeable growth. More people today than ever before understand that giving to the Community Foundation not only means connecting with causes they care about most but also means their gift will forever impact our communities. We hope you too will contact us today to discuss your charitable aspirations and how you want to leave your legacy.

It’s exciting to celebrate our 10 years with momentum behind us. Our board and staff talks daily about the positive changes we can initiate locally; with your support we can certainly employ strategic programs and initiatives to create positive change. There are certainly many issues challenging the local area, but together we have the power to make our communities better. Together, with your involvement, we can make a real impact.

SERVING OUR COMMUNITIESGalesburg Community Foundation’s Board of Directors is a group committed to service and the creation of healthier communities. They are passionate about providing leadership in Knox and Warren Counties to ensure sustainable philan-thropy, leadership and collective impact.

GALESBURG COMMUNITY FOUNDATION STAFFOur team is proud to work every day for Knox and Warren Counties. Creating healthier communi-ties is no simple task, but we know that our team, working in tandem with community members like you, will create a better place to live, work and play.

Joshua D. Gibb Executive Director

Bobbi K. Pio Director of Operations

Karlie Elliott BowmanDirector of Communications

Leanne Simpson Community Treasures Manager

Sherri Wayne Administrative Assistant

COMMITTED TOHEALTHIER COMMUNITIES.

Carl Nixon Chairman

Mark Kleine Vice- Chairman

Joel Estes Secretary

David Pearson Treasurer

(Front L-R) Carol Simpson, Joyce Coffman, Nancy Erickson(Back L-R) Carl Nixon, Joel Estes, Mark Kleine, David Pearson, Thomas Maloney, Lance Humphreys (not pictured - Harry Bulkeley)

(L-R) Bobbi Pio, Karlie Elliott Bowman, Joshua Gibb, Sherri Wayne, Leanne Simpson

Harry Bulkeley Joyce Coffman Nancy Erickson Lance Humphreys

Thomas Maloney

Carol Simpson

The Galesburg

Community Foundation

develops and supports

the efforts of local

people and organizations

to promote healthy

communities.

NONPROFIT ENDOWMENT FUNDS 1st Street ArmouryCentral Congregational ChurchDiscovery DepotFISH of GalesburgGalva Arts CouncilGalesburg Community ChorusGalesburg Historical SocietyGalesburg Rescue MissionHistoric Ellisville Restoration OrganizationKnox County Humane SocietyKnox County YMCARainbow RidersUnited Way of Knox County

THE POWER OF ENDOWMENT.Marge Dickinson, a recent Galesburg resident, is an avid believer in the power of the arts. As a for-mer art teacher, she is passionate about the role the arts play in our communities. For many years she has been an active member of the Galva Arts Council. To ensure a bright future for the Council, Marge worked with the Galesburg Community Foundation to establish an endowment fund for the organization.

Marge knows the impact this organization has on Galva and desires to see this impact remain and grow. The endowment fund provides flexibility to meet the Council’s immediate needs, while ensur-ing assets are preserved for their long-term mission. The Community Foundation protects the fund’s assets from being spent for any other purpose. By making a gift to the endowment fund, you too can help ensure the arts are forever vibrant in Galva.

The following is an excerpt from an email that is reprinted with permission from Marge to Galesburg Community Foundation Executive Director Josh Gibb. This email explains how Marge surprised the Galva Arts Council board by announcing she established an endowment fund for the organization.

Establishing a nonprofit endowment for an organization you care about is a powerful way to enable organizations to build upon their success, while not burdening them with the financial oversight. Endowments established at Galesburg Community Foundation allow benefiting nonprofits to focus on their mission, while receiving the assurance of annual distributions to further their charitable services.

“ “Well, I think I surprised everyone. The reaction was “Wow.”

We finished the old business portion of the Galva Arts Council meeting and it was time for new business. I told the board I was concerned that the Arts Council might fade away, but that I could see things changing with the advent of new young board members who

are good at working and planning. Enthusiasm and commitment I could see. I told them I wanted to help them, ease the burden of constant funding shortages. I told them what we

needed was an endowment and I gave them a short overview of what an endowment is and how one works.

I shared with the board that I established an endowment for the Galva Arts Council in

March. Then I shared with them the amount. Stunned looks, smiles slowly starting and then applause, muted cheers. “Wow,” they said.

I told them that we would work to expand the donations and give other people a chance to

add to the endowment.

They were upbeat, excited and looking forward to the future. It was very good.

And that is that. A very successful day. I am feeling good. Everyone is happy. Thanks to you for your help now and in the future.

-Marge

The name Mary Ann Bicker-dyke is synonymous with com-passion. A Galesburg resident, Mother Bickerdyke, as she came to be known, was revered for her generous and charita-ble service as a Civil War Chief Nurse under the command of General Ulysses S. Grant. Mother Bickerdyke’s actions were driven by her passion for serving others. She was de-termined to do what was right, even if it meant ignoring the norms of what was acceptable for a lady during her era.

The Galesburg Community Foundation understands the importance of Mother Bicker-dyke’s legacy, and in her honor the Foundation has established

INTRODUCING THE BICKERDYKE

SOCIETY.

the Bickerdyke Society, an or-ganization of donors who have made a planned giving com-mitment to the Foundation or one of its partners’ endowment funds. The purpose of the Bickerdyke Society is to recog-nize and thank individuals and families in their lifetimes for having the foresight to estab-lish a planned gift that will support causes they care about. As the beneficiary of these funds, the Galesburg Commu-nity Foundation is dedicated to steadfastly honoring the in-tent of these donors, ensuring their respective philanthropic legacies.

To launch the Bickerdyke So-ciety we are holding a charter

membership drive between now and October 15, 2015. This is an important community initiative, striving to strength-en our pool of public founda-tion funds that will collectively ensure a strong future for Knox and Warren Counties. Making a planned gift is an important decision, and we encourage you to visit us at our office or consult with your financial or professional advisor. Many charitable giving vehicles are good for families as well as the community, and our profes-sional staff looks forward to discussing options with you.

We can celebrate a glorious past and look forward to a great future, but sustainable

success will require investment and resources. Planned giving is something we can do togeth-er, on our own, without outside help or interference—local re-sources funding local solutions for local issues.

We invite you to consider the Galesburg Community Foun-dation and its Bickerdyke Society. We think this kind of resourcefulness embodies the spirit of Mother Bickerdyke, and we hope you will be part of the movement.

Rod Full firmly believes philanthropy can make a big difference in our communities, and in his family’s life. Rod is a husband, father, grandfa-ther and great-grandfather, and wants his fam-ily to be able to say, “Look at what my grand-parents did. They left this for the community. I wonder what I can do?” Rod and his wife Janey reside in Galesburg. They moved in 1993 to be closer to their daugh-ter Cynthia Stoerzbach, her husband Dan, and their four daughters. Their son Anthony and his wife Michelle reside in Broomfield, Colorado, and their son David Damian lives in Chicago.

Rod was inspired after reading in the newspa-per about community members making a dif-ference but was never sure how he could help. Then one evening Cynthia invited her dad to a meeting about a new park that would be located at the corners of North Kellogg and East Ferris in Galesburg. The goal of the park is to encour-age people to come together, share viewpoints and enjoy a public space.

Rod said, “I rode home that evening thinking about the park, its potential and what the new space would mean for our community. The next few days I worked on some math. When

FULLY COMMITTED.you’re 70 years old and retired, you know what your resources are and what you need to live the kind of life you desire. I know I can’t take anything with me when my time comes, so I thought I would give back and leave permanent resources here in Galesburg.”

“This gift is not about me,” Rod said. “As a fami-ly, we want others to see something like this and hopefully, they too will think about ways they can give. We hope the spirit of our gift will move others or even motivate them to give in the first place. We want people to get involved with philanthropy and humanity,” he said.

Rod and Janey’s children and grandchildren will certainly have something to see and be proud of thanks to their generosity. They and the entire community will have not only a beautiful park to visit but also a vivid memory of their grandparent’s willingness to give.

Rod said, “If just ten percent of people took the time to analyze what they have, our communi-ties wouldn’t need to ask for a lot, and many of us have the ability to make a difference. If we take the time to do a little math, we could all leave permanent resources here in our communities.”

Rod & Janey Full and Dan & Cynthia StoerzbachPhoto provided by Don Brown of Galesburg.

Seeing the scope of the many ways GCF helps our communities is inspiring. The awarding of grants makes a real difference towards strengthening our local area and its changing needs.

- Joyce Coffman““

(L-R) Jen Lazarz, Mia Lazarz, Joyce Coffman, Liz Spehar

For Lance and Gloria Humphreys, grow-ing is their livelihood. As family farmers they appreciate and enjoy the opportu-nity to watch growth, development and change. They know that with changing seasons come new opportunities and challenges. And this perspective applies not only to their farm but also to their involvement in the community and with the Galesburg Community Foundation.

Lance is a 10-year GCF board member and one of the original proponents of creating the Community Foundation. Lance has witnessed first hand the growth and development of the organi-zation. Because of his involvement, he and Gloria understand the critical role the Foundation plays, which is why they recently established the Humphreys Family Impact Fund. With their fund, the GCF board determines where grants are awarded and the Humphreys’ name is associated with the gift.

Gloria said, “We thoroughly believe in the saying, ‘Those who are given much are required to give back more.’ Because of our relationship with the Foundation and as active members of our commu-nity, we know there is a lot of need. We

wanted to reach out and help. It is im-portant to give back.”

Making the decision about how to give to the Community Foundation involved a lot of thought and insight. Gloria and Lance spent time reviewing options with GCF Executive Director Josh Gibb and Bobbi Pio, the Foundation’s Director of Operations. Lance said, “Gloria and I wanted to know how we could help the most. We settled with creating an Impact Fund. This way the Foundation would identify the most pressing issues facing the communities it serves and address those priorities the best.”

Lance and Gloria realize the power of giving locally and that by creating an Im-pact Fund at the Community Foundation they will provide valuable resource to our communities and nonprofits.

They know that to be successful, orga-nizations like the Foundation must have abundant resources.

For the future, Lance and Gloria plan to enjoy being a part of and watching their fund grow. After all, growing is an ex-citing activity with which farmers know very well.

GROWINGMEANS GIVING.

(Front L-R) Whitney & Brooke Humphreys and Luke & Paige Wessels.

(Back L-R) Tiffany & Rob Humphreys, Gloria & Lance Humphreys,

Matt & Heather Wessels.

Courtesy of Randy Weaver Photography of Knoxville.

PHILANTHROPY ISFULL CIRCLE.AT COMMUNITY

TREASURES THRIFT SHOP

At the Community Foundation we believe anyone who gives anything is a philanthropist. Philanthropy, derived from the Greek word philanthropus, translates to mean, “for the love of humankind.”

Leanne Simpson, Community Treasures Man-ager said, “The sole reason our volunteers do what they do is for the love of mankind. Our volunteers provide immeasurable admiration and inspiration as they donate one of the most precious resources we have…time.”

Community Treasures accepts donations from community members, who are also shoppers. Volunteers process donations and man the store. Store proceeds are then used for local grants provided by the Galesburg Commu-nity Foundation. It’s a full circle approach to philanthropy.

“Community Treasures is the ultimate life recycling center. We breathe new life into the hundreds of treasures that end up in our shop. We are their second chance,” Leanne said.

Volunteer Mary Lou Gunther said, “What we do here stays here in our community. I am a big proponent of the fact that the money our customers spend here in the shop goes into our community— and we all need to support our community.”

Leanne said, “We always keep in mind here at the shop that we operate on one single word—philanthropy—for the love of humanity.”

RURAL WEALTH MAKES A QUIET EXIT.

Editor’s Note: This article first appeared in Dakotafire, a journalism project that pools the resources of community newspapers and rural experts to report on issues of importance to rural communities in areas of North and South Dakota. Dakotafire’s Editor and Project Administrator, Heidi Marttila-Losure, graciously allowed this adapted version of her article to be printed in our Community Report. For more information about Dakotafire, visit dakotafire.net. This article was adapted, with permission, by Karlie Elliott Bowman, Director of Communications, Galesburg Community Foundation.

Wealth flows out of rural places with nearly every funeral—but in that problem is an op-portunity.

Read the obituaries in your local newspaper, and you’ll find stories of lives well-lived. Most of them also provide a clue as to whether that personal life story fits into a larger story that will significantly affect rural Illinois commu-nities in coming decades. Here’s how to tell: In the list of those surviving the deceased, how many names are followed by a hometown in a different state?

If you notice that all of the next generation has dispersed to the coasts, then you can be fairly certain that, in addition to the loss of that per-son’s wisdom and the role he or she played in the community, the wealth that person creat-ed over a lifetime will soon leave the state as well.

The process of those assets changing hands as they go from one generation to the next is called the transfer of wealth, and those who

have studied the issue say it represents an incredible opportunity for rural Illinois com-munities if they can take advantage of it—or a significant threat to them if they cannot.

BEHIND-THE-SCENES OPPORTUNITYThe amount of wealth set to change hands in rural Illinois communities over the next 10 years is eye-opening.

According to a study prepared for the Donors Forum and Midwest Community Foundations’ Ventures, about $720 million in Knox County and $230 million in Warren County is esti-mated to change hands in the next decade. The study indicates if just five percent of the 10-year transfer of wealth was captured into community endowments, an estimated fund of $46 million would be established—meaning that with a conservative 5% payout rate, $2.4 million would be available annually for com-munity betterment investments.

A CONCERN FOR TODAY, NOT SOMEDAYThe challenge for rural communities is that a

significant portion of the next generation does not live in the community where the wealth was created. Therefore, unless the current wealth-holders plan otherwise, much of the wealth grown on Illinois soil will eventually flow to heirs who have planted themselves in urban areas in Illinois or in other states.

Wealth leaving rural communities will more than likely never be seen again. And while communities may not feel the effects now, fu-ture generations who decide to call our com-munities home most certainly will. An important point the transfer of wealth data highlights is that the wealth is real, meaning resources are available which is significant to nonprofits. This realization should empower nonprofits to approach prospective donors with thoughts of broader objectives, rather than settling for the status quo. Nonprofits can then ask themselves, “What would we do to thrive as an organization if money was not a major barrier?” Proactive attitudes would also allow nonprofits to start looking at ways they

can address root causes of problems and not just symptoms. PHILANTHROPY AS LEGACYMany donors typically give out of gratitude to the communities that helped them succeed and build the wealth they now hold. Families also often say they know that their commu-nities are more likely to thrive in the future if they have additional resources on which to draw.

As one author of the Dakotafire article said, “Those in rural communities can hope that vibrant rural places are part of the future. The transfer of wealth is a tremendous op-portunity, especially for rural places. If it can be realized, it can really change the reality in these rural places. It would allow them to have the resources to make a difference in their communities. I hope that they realize that it’s important, and they start acting on it.”

“Wealth leaving rural communities will more than likely never be seen again. And while

communities may not feel the effects now, future generations who decide to call our communities

home most certainly will.”- Transfer of Wealth study prepared for the Donors Forum

and the Midwest Community Foundations’ Ventures.

STRENGTHENING LOCAL PHILANTHROPY TO SUPPORT HEALTHY COMMUNITIES

246 East Main Street, Suite #101Galesburg, IL 61401