THE GREAT GIVING MATCH
REQUEST FOR CONCEPT LETTERS

Frequently Asked Questions

DUE BY 5 p.m. Monday JULY 21, 2003

INTRODUCTION

The purpose of the Great Giving Match is to help Boulder County nonprofit organizations create permanent endowed resources, which will be available forever to assist them in achieving their mission.

The Community Foundation believes that establishing an endowment is an extremely important step for nonprofit groups for a variety of reasons. In addition to being a permanent source of annual income for a nonprofit group, payouts from an endowment may be used to cover whatever needs are most pressing for the nonprofit in any given year. They provide reliability in budgeting, meaning less fund raising obligation for the agency, and thus more energy available to focus on its mission.

The Great Giving Match is a program of The Community Foundation that offers matching dollars as incentive for Boulder County nonprofits seeking to establish or grow their own agency’s endowment. The Community Foundation will offer a $1:$1 match to selected nonprofits.

It is important to note that this money is not a grant, and will not be available for your group to spend. Rather, The Community Foundation will manage and hold these endowed funds, and will pay 5 percent of the value of the fund each year to the nonprofit for unrestricted expenses.

APPLICATION PROCESS

I.

Cover letter.
One page on organization letterhead with:

  • Amount of endowment goal
  • Reason for applying for the Great Giving Match now
  • County where the organization is located and county(s) and city(s) served
  • Address, telephone, e-mail address, and fax number
  • Project director name and title
  • Signature of Executive Director, President/CEO or Principal
  • Signature of Board of Directors (or governing body) President
II.

Concept Sheet
Please keep to 2-3 pages, including the following information:

Agency Background

  • Mission statement and brief statement of organization’s goals and/or objectives.
  • Brief summary of organization’s history including founding date.
  • Description of current programs, activities and clients served.
III.

Interest in Great Giving Match Program

  • What is your organization’s endowment goal for the Great Giving Match? Explain how you arrived at this amount. Your endowment goal may be any amount between $5,000 and $25,000.
  • Why is having this endowment significant to your organization?
  • Why is this the right time for your organization to take this project on?
  • Does the organization currently have an endowment? If so, what is the current market value? How was the endowment raised?


ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

  • Applicants can be any non-profit organization with an IRS 501(c)(3) designation or any governmental or public entity.
  • The group or organization must provide services or conduct the proposed activities within Boulder County for the benefit of Boulder County residents.
  • The Community Foundation does not fund projects that further a particular religious or political doctrine.


FUNDING RANGE
The Great Giving Match will consider requests for funding ranging between $5,000 and $25,000.

TIME LINE
Monday, July 21, 2003      Concept Letters due.
FURTHER DETAILS TO BE ANNOUNCED

Concept letters are due by 5:00 p.m. Monday July 21st in the office of The Community Foundation Serving Boulder County. You can mail or hand-deliver one copy to:
The Community Foundation, 1123 Spruce Street, Boulder, CO 80302
Sorry, we cannot accept faxed or e-mailed proposals.

For more information, please contact Margaret Katz or Gretchen Minekime at
The Community Foundation, 303-442-0436 or email