Set Up A Fund

Left - Cheryl White of Canadian Mountain Holidays presents a cheque to Karen Hamling of the Foundation to establish the CMH Environmental Fund.

Karen’s Fund

Set up by Karen Hamling for youth, poverty and focus on providing funds for mutrious food through breakfast and lunch programs for NES and NSS program.

Molly Bell’s Green Fund

These are the following green initiatives that could be considered

Green initiatives include projects that promote residents to:

• Walk, cycle, skate instead of driving a car
• Plant trees
• Post anti-idling signage
• Support local food growers and grow your own
• Eat less meat
• Use non toxic cleaning products
• Buy less stuff, the new 3 R's: repair, refuse recycle
• Build energy efficient homes

October, 2010

The John and Peggy Grigg Endowment Fund was established with a donation of $10,000.00 from the Halcyon Home Foundation in October of 2010.  

The fund has been established specifically for senior’s projects.

Arrow Lakes News, December 1, 2009

The Kootenay Savings Community Foundation has set up a $67,500 fund within the Nakusp & Area Community Foundation for future community projects.

The Nakusp foundation currently holds its funds and gives the interest away via grants. Director on the foundation board and Nakusp Mayor Karen Hamling says they have been giving out $8,000 annually and this boost should increase them to the $10,000 mark.

“To me, it’s wonderful for the community,” says Hamling. The Summit Lake Ski Hill and the NSS soup program are just two of the recipients of the foundation’s money. Hamling says the money is available to community projects involved in education, health, the arts and social and environmental issues. She says funding is available via request and after an application process.

Kootenay Savings community relations co-ordinator Aron Burke says $3,375 of the fund will be available in 2010 while the remaining 95 per cent of the fund will be held in perpetuity.

Burke says New Denver is also a community which will be receiving money. They do not have a community foundation in place, he says, so Kootenay Savings is setting aside $39,600 for them.

Across the Kootenay region, Kootenay Savings invested $1 million. Community foundations which cover the Invermere, Radium, Kaslo, Kimberely, Greater Trail and Nakusp areas received contributions. Kootenay Savings is keeping funds within its Foundation for the communities of Castlegar, Salmo, South Slocan and New Denver.

Arrow Lakes News, April 29, 2008

The Nakusp and Area Community Foundation (NACF) is in the middle of their granting season, in which they give money to worthy groups and projects. At the same time, they’re asking community members to think about making a lasting contribution to the area communities by making a donation to the foundation.

The NACF was created in 2002 when the Board filed for society status, and in 2003, with the assistance of the Nakusp ” Area Development Board (NADB), they filed and received charitable status.

They started the fund with a $10,000 donation from the NADB in 2003, followed by a community fundraising drive that netted $50,000, which was matched by $50,000 from both the Columbia Basin Trust and the Vancouver Foundation. As of the end of 2007, they have $163,293 in the fund, which will allow them to contribute $8,186 to the community this year. At the same time, they’ve raised about $9,400 over the past year, and are waiting until they’ve raised $10,000 before depositing it into the trust.

The trust operates by depositing money with the Vancouver Foundation, a professionally managed foundation with a very secure rating, and the largest of its type in Canada. The capital in the fund is never touched, with the grants coming from the interest, thereby continuously generating revenue to support community needs.

The NACF isn’t just for municipal Nakusp covering the Edgewood to Trout Lake to Summit Lake triangle, and accepts applications for funding, board members and donations from all the communities in between.

This year they are looking to greatly increase the amount of funding coming from individuals.

One possible source of donations they’re asking residents to consider is in the area of estate planning. Donations of cash or real estate are accepted, as well as funds bequeathed in a will or through a life insurance policy. “What we really need to get out to the community now is that the endowment needs private donations,” says director Barb Chwachka, who notes they haven’t received as many private donations as they’d like. “I think we all kind of feel that it’s because nobody really knows about us.”

She says they’ve received lots of small donations, and have fundraised through the Jail and Bail event each year, but now they’re looking for larger donations. “Instead of donating to some group from outside of Nakusp, why not donate in Nakusp?” asks Chwachka.

Guided by a board of directors, the foundation’s vision is a commitment to a healthy and vibrant community for today and tomorrow, and their mission is to promote leadership and sustainability within our communities through the endowment fund, which enables broad and effective grant-making. Their values are openness, honesty, integrity and accountability.

Over the past years they’ve focused on specific themes. One year they focused on combating hunger in local communities.

In other years they’ve targeted youth, seeking to support activities to keep youth engaged in healthy, constructive programs, donating to soccer clubs, theatre groups and ski clubs, amongst others.

Their initial grants of $5,000 in 2004, 2005, 2006, and 2007 came from the Vancouver Foundations LEAD grants, which are essentially seed money to get community foundations going. That funding, however, is over, and grants from now on will come from interest, which makes it more important that the NACF receives donations from the community.

Another option for those donating amounts over $5,000 is the ability to create a specified, named fund earmarked for specific purposes, such as a general category like ‘youth’, or to something more specific, such as towards a bursary for students heading into a particular post-secondary field of study. There are some restrictions on the specified donations.

They’re currently in the middle of their granting season, and are asking for letters of interest through the end of May. They’re hoping to boost the number of applications they receive.

The board of directors this year are Vivien Berry, Karen Hamling, Dave Jackson, Linda Kendall, Shannon Roberts, Barb Chwachka and Deb Austin.  The volunteer board manages the foundation’s activities, while the Vancouver Foundation administers the trust fund.

They accept donations from individuals, businesses, corporations, charitable organizations and private foundations.

For more information, or to contact the foundation, visit their website at http://www.nakuspfoundation.com.

You can also contact director Barb Chwachka at 265-3053 or director Karen Hamling at 265-3322.

Of course, tax receipts are available for donations.