For our community
A special gift to Community Children’s Center
Colette and Ron Gaches follow a philosophy of philanthropy closely aligned with the mission of DCCF: “to help make Lawrence a better place to live, work, and raise a family.” With a $50,000 gift to the Community Children’s Center (CCC) capital campaign, Ron and Colette are starting upstream to address a daunting crisis in our community — the lack of affordable, available child care.
“The crisis in child care is staggering. We would need an additional 3,000 child care slots to fill the current needs,” said Kim Polson, executive director of CCC. “The need will only grow greater in the future as Lawrence continues to expand and the region continues to bring in high-quality employers and projects, such as Panasonic.”
Ron and Colette appreciate the comprehensive approach CCC is taking to address the crisis of unmet child care. “It’s more than a band-aid approach,” said Ron. In addition to having slots for up to 140 kids, the facility also will serve as a training facility for new child care providers and support providers in establishing their own facilities. The facility will enable the creation of a growing provider network to meet growing needs. Its financial model is built to have a place for kids regardless of their parents’ ability to pay, and offer other service providers another access point for serving families in need.
When the Gaches were ready to make their stock gift to CCC, they came to DCCF. “An important part of creating a giving community is to make the giving easy, and DCCF plays a critical role in that effort,” Ron said. “Most of our local not-for-profits don’t have the resources to handle all of the work associated with gifts of stock or other assets. DCCF allows our service organizations to focus on what they do best while DCCF handles the financial administrative work. That allows donors like us to focus on the needs and not the process. DCCF makes it easy.”
If you would like to donate to CCC, please visit their fund page.
Renderings courtesy of Bartlett & West |
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Qualified charitable distributions and SECURE 2.0
You may be aware of new federal legislation commonly called the SECURE Act, or “SECURE 2.0”, enacted at the end of 2022. SECURE 2.0 made minor changes to Qualified Charitable Distributions, or QCDs. Many charitable individuals who are 70½ or older have already been taking advantage of the QCD. This technique allows a taxpayer to make an annual transfer of up to $100,000 from an IRA to a qualifying public charity such as a designated fund, organization fund, field-of- interest fund, scholarship fund, or unrestricted fund at the community foundation. The taxpayer does not pay income tax on the distribution and, for taxpayers who must take RMDs from their retirement plans, the QCD counts toward that year’s RMD. Here are three things you should know about SECURE 2.0 provisions:
More time to accumulate retirement assets
The required minimum distribution (RMD) age (previously 72) increased to 73 on January 1, 2023. The RMD age will further increase to 75 beginning on January 1, 2033. This provision is a boost to retirees’ financial plans and may mean more dollars available for charitable giving, especially in the form of a tax-savvy beneficiary designation of retirement plans to charity.
Note that the age for QCD eligibility is still 70½, and, still, donor-advised funds are not eligible recipients of a QCD.
“Legacy IRA” opportunity
SECURE 2.0 makes QCDs even more attractive because taxpayers may now make a one-time $50,000 QCD transfer to a charitable remainder trust (CRT) or other split-interest gift such as a charitable gift annuity (CGA). These components of the new law are called the “Legacy IRA” provisions.
Bigger QCDs
The annual per-taxpayer $100,000 QCD cap is now slated to be indexed for inflation, which will allow taxpayers to give even more from their IRAs directly to charity.
Chip Blaser would be happy to talk with you about how the new laws can enhance your charitable giving plans. Reach out anytime!
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Giving for Good campaign
The third annual DCCF Giving for Good campaign ended 2022 with 145 donors providing $252,476 in grant project support and matching funds to 48 Douglas County nonprofit organizations. Encouraged by the ability to participate in Giving for Good, eight nonprofit organizations in Douglas County opened funds with DCCF in 2022.
Get to know Life Restoration Ministries (LRM)
LRM is one of the new nonprofit organizations working with DCCF. Founded in 2007, the organization engages in multifaceted programming blending theatre and the arts, STE(A)M education, and mental health wellness.
The organization’s founder, Nicole Rials, said opening a fund at DCCF created the opportunity to help LRM reach their financial sustainability goals and increased opportunities for philanthropic partnerships in the community.
“We are a civic-minded organization promoting social justice, reconciliation, and advancing racial equity and belonging. We have a partnership with the Lied Center for our original stage plays, and our next performance will be in celebration of Juneteenth on Saturday, June 17, and we welcome the community to join us.” The performance is free and open to the public. Other upcoming projects include a STE(A)M mobile event in summer 2023, and advancing mental health and wellness services for BIPOC communities with care from clinicians trained in cultural competencies. Visit LRMLawrence.com for details.
*Photos courtesy of Life Restoration Ministries.
Mark your calendars
This year’s DCCF Giving for Good campaign will kick-off on #GivingTuesday, November 28, 2023.
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DCCF Grant Awards Update
The 2022 Elizabeth Schultz Environmental Fund Grant committee awarded $20,000 to three nonprofit organization projects. ESEF supports a wide variety of local efforts to preserve and understand nature. Projects may address the fund’s goals in scientific, cultural, educational, aesthetic or economic ways.
The 2022 DCCF Livewell Community Wellness Grant committee awarded $79,250 to 11 nonprofit organization projects. DCCF LiveWell Community Wellness Grants aim to support the health of Douglas County residents by creating conditions that lead to healthy eating and physically active lifestyles, with a focus on the health and wellbeing of children and youth.
The 2022 Winter Family Fund Grant committee awarded $70,000 to 14 nonprofit organization projects. The mission of the Winter Family Fund is to make a meaningful difference in the lives of at-risk and vulnerable populations with an emphasis on at-risk and vulnerable children and families, particularly in the designated geographic areas of Douglas County, Franklin County and Johnson County in Kansas, and in Taos County, New Mexico.
DCCF 2023 Spring Community Grants were awarded by the DCCF Board of Directors in March. Grant awards totaled $130,020 to 19 nonprofit organizations serving Douglas County citizens.
For more information regarding grantees or grant opportunities, please visit DCCFoundation.org or contact Lori Trenholm, director of community investment. |
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What do nonprofits need right now?
Find out in our 2023 mid-year Nonprofit Grant Catalog!
Nonprofit organizations are doing more than ever with limited resources to serve our most vulnerable citizens, our fragile environment, our children, and our animal friends. Donors ask, “How can we help right now? What do they need?” We have answers!
 The new Nonprofit Grant Catalog is an opportunity for you to explore a variety of nonprofit grant projects and programs on our website and donate securely online or by check. Donors with donor-advised funds invested at DCCF can donate directly from their fund to any of the participating nonprofits through the donor portal.
We have intentionally made this a low-barrier grant program so nonprofit organizations can ask for whatever they need, and at any funding level, April through August. The application process has six easy steps and takes less than 10 minutes.
Participating nonprofit organizations must have a fund with DCCF and be a registered 501(c)(3). To set up a fund for your organization, please contact Chip Blaser.
This is a “rolling” grant program, so we encourage you to check our website regularly for new projects and programs in need of funding.
Donors may also wish to donate in the following ways.
- Donate securely online: Visit www.dccfoundation.org.
- Send checks to DCCF: Make checks payable to Douglas County Community Foundation, 900 Massachusetts, Suite 406, Lawrence, KS 66044. Write in the memo line the name of the project or program you wish to support.
- Donate appreciated stock or through other property transactions: Please contact Chip Blaser or call him at 785-843-8727 for more information.
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Good News!
Students at Limestone Community School in Lawrence are working with local architects to combat homelessness on a local level.
“What if?” — a simple question from a Lavar Burton book their teacher Madeline Herrera read to them — led one student to ask, “What if everyone had parents and a home?” Together the students explored the homelessness situation and decided the solution was to design and build homes for those in need.
The collaborative design company Multistudio is working with Limestone’s students to design the homes. Hands-on activities helped them design realistic spaces.
The class has a goal to raise $120,000 for building materials. Tenants to Homeowners has donated land for the project and will manage the properties and find tenants. Stay tuned for construction progress!
You may donate to the Limestone Community School Housing Project Fund on our website.
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Connecting the diverse citizens and communities of Douglas County through charitable action.
This newsletter is provided for informational purposes only. It is not intended as legal, accounting, or financial planning advice.
Board of Directors
Webster Golden, Chair
Matthew D. All, Justin Cordova, Becki Dick, LaVerne Epp, Bob Fairchild, Melissa Padgett, Dan Simons, Beth Stella, Deanell Reece Tacha, Steve Warren, Katie Winter
Executive Director
Chip Blaser
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