Hello from the community foundation!
In these challenging times, the community foundation is here for you. Our team is always happy to serve as a sounding board as you explore ways to keep your donors engaged to sustain your mission for the long term. We’re offering updates to help you stay the course and keep you informed of external factors that may affect your fundraising efforts.
–You’re familiar, of course, with matching gifts programs, and now is an excellent time to review strategies that can help you maximize these opportunities. The statistics continue to show that matching programs can increase donor engagement and the value of gifts. Consider leveling up your donor communications to inspire more matching gifts.
–It’s easy to get discouraged in the face of many external pressures that could significantly impact your ability to carry out your mission and raise funds to meet your budget and long-term goals for growth and sustainability. Still, there are reasons to be hopeful about donors’ commitment to the community and your important work, even right now.
–You’re certainly watching legislative developments, several of which are raising significant concern. The community foundation keeps an eye on potential changes in the law that could impact your work, paying particular attention to proposed changes that could affect your fundraising and donor engagement strategies. Learn what may be on the horizon.
Thank you for everything you do! Whether your organization has established an endowment or reserve fund at the community foundation, or you’re considering it at some point in the future, we look forward to our next conversation. We are in this together!
–Your community foundation
THIS MONTH’S
TRENDING TOPICS
Saving for a rainy day: Matching gifts and growing your endowment
by Staff Name, Director of Charitable Giving
Many charities and their boards of directors are evaluating strategies to grow the organization’s endowment during these challenging economic times. One way to do that is by strategically leveraging donors’ financial contributions through corporate or other matching gift programs.
You’re certainly aware that many employers will match your donor’s donation—often dollar for dollar—effectively doubling the impact without requiring the donor to give more. Sometimes an individual donor or a specific foundation will offer to match donations for a particular campaign or for a period of time. Of course, any type of match increases the total dollar amount flowing to your organization to sustain operations or grow your endowment. In addition–and a factor that charities often overlook–is that matching gifts also incentivize donors to give larger gifts because they know their contributions will be amplified. Indeed, research shows that 84% of donors are more likely to give if a match is offered, and one in three will increase their gift size when they know it will be matched.
Here are two tips to attract matching gifts. First, focus on getting the word out to your donors. Second, try to streamline the matching process. Both of these factors are important. Many donors are unaware of their eligibility for employer matching programs, so it’s a good idea to consider integrating matching gift search tools into donation forms, send targeted follow-up emails, or at least provide clear instructions on how to submit match requests. Promoting matching opportunities during key campaigns—such as endowment drives or special giving events—and combining corporate matches with major donor or board-funded matching challenges can create a sense of urgency and multiply the impact even further. Some organizations have seen campaign revenue increase by 30% or more when a matching gift offer is included..
Beyond immediate fundraising gains, leveraging matching gifts deepens donor engagement and builds stronger relationships with both individual supporters and corporate partners. Donors who participate in matching programs often feel a greater sense of impact and are more likely to continue giving in the future.
If you’re ready to explore how you can tap even further into matching gifts as a strategy to sustain your operating budget or grow your endowment, please reach out to the community foundation team. We are happy to discuss ideas for cultivating partnerships with local businesses and major donors for matching campaigns that can open new avenues for support and ramp up your organization’s visibility within the community.
Making matching gifts a central part of your fundraising strategy can help unlock new revenue streams, inspire larger and more frequent gifts, and ensure long-term financial sustainability. We look forward to a conversation!
Reasons to be hopeful, even in times like these
by Staff Name, Director of Charitable Giving
It is an understatement to say that 2025 has been rough for charitable organizations. Economic volatility, a challenging political climate, and tax reform on the horizon are major factors for many nonprofits.
Despite the harsh realities of external factors, here are three potential bright spots for your organization’s staff and board to consider as you continue the hard work of delivering on your mission.
Generosity tends to endure through crisis
History shows that even during economic downturns, disasters, or uncertainty, the spirit of generosity persists. Donors are motivated not just by surplus wealth but by a deep belief in the causes they support. In other words, the people who care about your organization really do care. Even in the wake of major recessions and national tragedies, nonprofits have adapted to new realities, rallied donors, and continued to raise the funds they need to carry out their missions.
Keep talking to donors
Certainly not all donors are affected the same way when times get tough. Some may find it hard to give due to financial constraints, while others may be less financially affected and continue giving at historical levels or even beyond. It’s important for a nonprofit’s board and staff to keep communicating with donors, avoid making assumptions about capacity or lack thereof, and stay confident and passionate about your mission and its importance to the lives of the people you serve. In other words, don’t stop asking donors for gifts, and don’t narrow the range of gifts you’re seeking. Annual giving, campaign giving, endowment giving, and planned giving all are still on the menu. Now is not the time to take a step back.
Step up your own game
There is no better time to get better at fundraising than during a challenging time! You and your team may look back and be glad you were forced to get more efficient, creative, and strategic about engaging donors in every aspect of giving, including endowment and legacy giving. Double down on testing new ideas on a few donors so you can “fail small” and see what works. When you see results from a particular strategy, take note! If something works during really tough times, imagine what could happen when things turn around.
Please reach out to the community foundation team! We are happy to serve as a sounding board to help you navigate these turbulent times so that your organization can emerge stronger and better than before. Philanthropy is essential to maintaining and improving quality of life in our community, and we are all in this together.
On notice: Three observations about pending tax legislation
by Staff Name, Director of Charitable Giving
Over the last few weeks, our team at the community foundation has talked with dozens of nonprofit leaders and people who serve on charities’ boards of directors about the so-called "Big Beautiful Bill” (H.R. 1) that passed the House of Representatives by a narrow margin on May 22, 2025. Understandably, many nonprofit organizations are concerned that this legislation might impact their work.
Among many troubling elements are provisions that could affect fundraising strategies to attract annual gifts, major gifts, endowment gifts, and planned gifts. Here are three provisions that are especially important to watch.
Corporate giving
What’s the provision?
The proposed legislation introduces a 1% “floor” on corporate charitable deductions, meaning corporations could only deduct charitable contributions that exceed 1% of their taxable income, up to the existing 10% cap.
What’s the concern?
This provision could discourage corporate giving, particularly for companies that typically donate less than 1% of their income, as their contributions would no longer be deductible unless they surpass that threshold. The uncertainty over whether corporations can deduct the full value of their contributions or only the amount above 1% adds further ambiguity, potentially leading to reduced corporate support for charities.
Is it all bad news?
Many corporations support charities through sponsorships that come out of their marketing budgets, not their charitable giving budgets. The proposed legislation does not impact a corporation’s ability to deduct marketing expenses.
Private foundation giving
What’s the provision?
The pending bill would restructure and increase taxes on private foundations, specifically the net investment income tax. The bill replaces the previous flat rate with a graduated structure, imposing higher rates on larger foundations—up to 10% for those with assets exceeding $5 billion.
What’s the concern?
The proposed increase in tax liability could potentially reduce the amount of funding available for charitable grants, as private foundations may have fewer resources to distribute after accounting for the higher taxes. Additionally, increased compliance costs associated with these new tax structures could further divert funds away from charitable activities and into administrative overhead.
Is it all bad news?
Donor-advised funds could become an even more important source of funding if the new laws cause some donors to shift away from private foundations as their primary organizing structure for their philanthropy. In the case of donor-advised funds held at the community foundation, this could be good news because the community foundation actively works with donors to use their donor-advised funds to keep charitable dollars flowing to charities in our community.
Individual giving
What’s the provision?
The proposed legislation affects individual giving by extending provisions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 that were scheduled to sunset at the end of this year. Specifically, the standard deduction is slated to remain high under the proposed legislation, as is the estate tax exemption.
What’s the concern?
The chilling effect on charitable giving of a higher standard deduction and higher estate tax deduction is likely to continue.
Is it all bad news?
The bill includes a modest charitable deduction for non-itemizers, allowing up to $150 for single filers and $300 for married couples.
Collectively, these changes potentially could make fundraising more challenging for charities. What’s important to keep in mind, though, is that nothing is set in stone–yet. Significant changes to the bill are likely as the Senate starts reviewing the bill in June. The process could stretch into July or August as both the House and Senate work out their differences before sending the bill to President Trump for signature. We’ll keep you posted as the situation develops. We are here for you!
This newsletter is provided for informational purposes only. It is not intended as legal, accounting, or financial planning advice.