Hancock County Community Foundation Community Vitality Funds

If conservation is a subject near and dear to your heart, you’ll love this fund! Bill and Kathy Armstrong, along with their children Jennifer and Christopher and their grandchildren, will make recommendations to the Community Foundation that reflect their passion for environmental conservation organizations, programs, and causes. This donor-advised fund allows complete flexibility for other charitable purposes as well, and provides the perfect opportunity for a giving family.

The GRI Banner Fund provides support to the Community Foundation, nonprofits, and the City of Greenfield for the purchase and maintenance of banners located in the downtown area.

 

A member of HCCF’s Spirit of Community fund family, grants provide support for conserving and protecting Hancock County’s natural environment through recycling, clean energy, and green initiatives.

This fund provides support to opportunities that encourage residents to meet each other, socialize, and enjoy nature in public places.

This non-permanent fund helps provide funding to continue the annual planting of flowers in downtown Greenfield.

Greenfield Main Street Inc. (GMSI) has played a role in making downtown vibrant since 2008. Between planning events and getting the word out about attractions, small business, and other amenities downtown Greenfield offers, they’ve helped put the city on the map.

When the opportunity arose to consider sustainable income for their future work, they were ready.

“When we saw the opportunity to start an endowment fund, Greenfield Main Street’s Board of Directors knew it was a good opportunity to create a perpetual income source as well as align ourselves with other great organizations that had already created an endowment through the community foundation,” says Shelley Swift, executive director of Greenfield Main Street.

In September 2019, Greenfield Main Street worked with the Hancock County Community Foundation to create the Greenfield Main Street, Inc. Operating Endowment Fund.  The purpose of this fund is to provide grants to sustain the mission of GMSI to foster prosperity in Greenfield’s historic downtown.  The organization sees creating an endowment fund as an opportunity to show the community that they are devoted to their mission for the long run.

Donations will contribute to GMSI’s mission of preserving and promoting Greenfield’s unique downtown historic district, which the nonprofit hopes potential donors see the value in this.

“There’s no other downtown just like Greenfield’s. Our historic buildings and merchants are one-of-a-kind, and at Greenfield Main Street, it’s our job to give our downtown the best chance to not only survive but to thrive for generations to come,” Swift explains.  “Our nonprofit not only plans fun events like Bikes in Bloom to draw people downtown, we also orchestrate promotions like the Holiday Passport, which encourages folks to patronize our downtown businesses. Our facade program is instrumental in providing funding to business and building owners in order to keep our historic buildings looking their best. We also work with a number of community partners to enhance our downtown. Our newest endeavor is creating a self-guided historic walking tour along with our friends at Greenfield Historic Landmarks.”

Although their endowment is in its infancy, GMSI finds it very easy to see the benefits for their organization in the future.  They recommend other nonprofits look into endowments and research if it would be beneficial to their organization.  Sustainability is a concern for almost every nonprofit, and GMSI knows having that permanent endowment in place will provide a sense of security, especially as the fund grows.

GMSI is in the process of launching and endowment campaign to engage donors in this project. While the groundwork for kicking off their endowment fund is time-consuming, Greenfield Main Street knows the effort will be well worth it in the end.

“We can’t thank the Hancock County Community Foundation enough for providing this opportunity, and for supporting us throughout the process, every step of the way,” Swift concludes.

The Greenfield Parks, Recreation, and Senior Citizens Endowment provides operating funds to support the legacy of quality parks and recreational services and facilities, as provided by the City of Greenfield and its Board of Parks and Recreation.

Those who serve have a motto, “Never Forget”. In keeping, firefighters across the county have come together to build the Hancock County Fire Fighters’ Memorial, located in Greenfield, Indiana. Gifts made to this non-permanent fund benefits the project.

The Community Foundation has proudly partnered with Hancock County veterans who created a memorial to honor those who have, who are, and who will put their lives on the line for the great nation we call “Home”! The Hancock County Veterans Memorial was created in the way of a visible and inviting garden/park that will ensure the service of every American Veteran with ties to Hancock County will be remembered in a permanent way.

The approximately 285 military personnel that lost their lives in times of war will be documented in a major focal point, but this is not a war memorial. This memorial is for all Hancock County veterans and Hancock County families who wish to honor veterans who dedicated a part of their life to serve in the military.

The Keith and Joanne McClarnon Regreening Endowment assists in the reforestation, landscaping, beautification, and general improvement of the environment in Hancock County, through the efforts of Regreening Greenfield, a nonprofit organization, responsible for performing the duties required to meet the fund’s objectives.

HCCF was honored to celebrate a wonderful gift that was given to the Foundation in 1999 by the Armin and Dorothy Schramm family. In light of development in the county, the Schramm family felt strongly about preserving the natural woods on their property for  all time and gifted the property to HCCF with the condition that it remain protected. The woods is fittingly named The Jacob Schramm Nature Preserve to honor the family’s German ancestor who, in the mid-1800’s, settled and worked on the very land the family resides on today. A beautiful sign marks the property.

A conservation partnership between the Foundation and Central Indiana Land Trust, Inc. (CILTI) was established. CILTI will provide an inventory of the property’s natural features, including plant, songbird, geology and soils classification; coordinate and conduct volunteer work days to control exotic invasive species; pick up trash; and engage in other preservation activities.

HCCF is honored to have received the gift of this precious family heirloom.

This permanent fund provides long-term support for maintenance of the Sugar Creek Park in New Palestine.

Dr. Herb and Judy Brown established a fund that will ensure proper maintenance of the Thornwood Preserve. This generous couple gifted beautiful woods, located on Morristown Pike, to the City of Greenfield’s Parks and Recreation Department in 2006. Their desire is to ensure the preservation and enjoyment of the property in its natural state for many generations to come. Because it is so important to the Browns that the property be well maintained, they have created a maintenance endowment fund that will provide the Parks Department with income to support this purpose forever. The fund was created at this time so that it will grow and sufficiently support the property when it is opened to the public in the future. Contributions to this fund will enhance the impact the Parks Department will have on the maintenance of the Thornwood Preserve.

“God has blessed us in many ways. Thornwood Preserve has been one of those special blessings. We enjoy so much roaming the woods and observing the wildlife there. The gift of the woods and the maintenance endowment fund are ways we can share this unique place with others.” —Herb & Judy Brown