Jane Simpson Hired as Executive Director

The Community Foundation of Davie County began 2003 with almost $200,000 in assets under management and no staff. During the year, President Jane Simpson was hired, the name was changed to focus on the community, the board affirmed their commitment to building permanently endowed funds for Davie County, and the board issued its first grant challenges. The Foundation ended 2003 with assets under management of $1,576,844!

"The progress has been exciting," stated Simpson. "We have a long way to go in meeting the aggressive goals we set for ourselves, but I feel good about the efforts we have made thus far. We have basically re-created our organization. We established policies, wrote fund agreements, and implemented a 9-month marketing plan last year."

During 2003, an Administrative Fund was established by G. Allen Mebane IV to support the operations of the Foundation. Two new Donor Advised Funds were opened and an Acorn Fund was established. "Acorn Funds" were approved by the Foundation Board in November 2003 to encourage the community to begin participation with the Foundation. A named Acorn Fund may be established with a gift of $1,000. The fund must grow through additional donations and earnings to at least $5,000 before distributions can be made from it.

"We think there will be a lot of interest in the Acorn Funds by younger donors," said Simpson. "They can start a named fund and "grow" it over several years as they have money available for donation. If the fund grows into a Donor Advised Fund, many donors will enjoy recommending which charities and non-profits receive their distributions."

The first grant challenge issued by the Foundation was issued to the Storehouse for Jesus to raise capital monies for their building project. The Storehouse was challenged to raise $90,000 from the more than 90 churches between October 1, 2003 and March 31, 2004 to be matched with $30,000 by The Community Foundation of Davie County. As of January 20, 2004, the Storehouse has raised $57,680 in cash donations.

The second challenge issued by the Foundation was to the ministers of Davie County to form an association to better identify needs of the community and to provide civic leadership. In January 2004, the ministers held their third meeting to discuss an association.

The Foundation began 2004 as busy as it ended 2003. A Development Committee has been formed to strategize about ways to promote the Foundation and continue to build the permanent endowment. A Scholarship Committee has also been formed to create a Scholarship Program at the Foundation. The committee has been charged with the tasks of determining the vision for the program as well as the requirements and structure for the application and selection process. According to Simpson, "Creating a true Scholarship Program at the Foundation will be a tremendous amount of work, but we believe community donors want to establish scholarship funds to support the continuing education of our young people. We will also look at creating a Community Scholarship Fund where any size donations, honorariums, or memorials could be made to benefit Davie County students."

Community members interested in serving on a committee or volunteering with The Community Foundation of Davie County are encouraged to contact Jane Simpson at the Foundation Office (336-753-6903).

The mission of The Community Foundation of Davie County, Inc. is to "advance philanthropy and pool donor assets for the benefit of our community." The Foundation accepts gifts in any amount toward its Unrestricted Fund and has a variety of options for establishment of named funds in honor or memory of donors. To learn more about The Community Foundation of Davie County, Inc. contact Jane Simpson at (336) 936-0045 or jsimpson@daviefoundation.org or visit the Foundation web-site at www.daviefoundation.org.