Community Foundation makes Hancock County a better place

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To the editor:

While philanthropy is our business each and every day, we like to draw special attention to charitable giving during November — National Philanthropy Month.

Miriam Beard, a historian and suffragette from Indiana, said, “The results of philanthropy are always beyond calculation.”

We can calculate that the Hancock County Community Foundation (HCCF) operates a $30 million endowment and has granted more than $11.2 million since 1992. But it’s harder to quantify the gratitude of a patron at the Kenneth Butler Memorial Soup Kitchen, the significance of the restored, historic Octagon House to the Shirley community, the joy of a child who receives an Imagination Library book, or the anecdotal impact any HCCF grant makes on an individual level.

Here are just a few accomplishments and upcoming goals for HCCF: 

  • During the Summer 2016 grant cycle, HCCF granted more than $100,000 to area nonprofit charitable organizations.
  • In 2017, HCCF will administer more than $250,000 in scholarship dollars to high school seniors, college students and adult learners pursuing post-secondary education.
  • There are currently 230 babies enrolled in the Imagination Library program, an early childhood literacy initiative providing age-appropriate books to eligible children in Hancock County. HCCF is leading the charge to raise a $2 million endowment by 2020 so every child in Hancock County under the age of 5 will be eligible for enrollment. 

November 12 to 18 marks the 27th annual Community Foundation Week. There are 94 community foundations in Indiana, including your local Hancock County Community Foundation, working every day for the betterment of communities. Each member of the board of directors exercises the opportunity to impact a number of important organizations and initiatives in Hancock County by giving to the community foundation. Anyone can be a part of the philanthropy effort, too.

This November, we ask your readers to consider establishing a permanent endowment fund with or donating to a fund at HCCF in recognition of National Philanthropy Month. The staff will work with community members to ensure charitable goals become reality and investments achieve the highest impact in making Hancock County a great place to live, work and play.

 Bob Bogigian

Chair, Board of Directors

Hancock County Community Foundation