WWW.CFSJC.ORG • (574) 232-0041 • 205 W. JEFFERSON BLVD., SUITE 610 • SOUTH BEND, IN 46601

DECEMBER 2015 CONNECTING PEOPLE WHO CARE WITH CAUSES THAT MATTER

Connected Communities: Tech Help, Savings for Local CharitiesLocal charities get help with technology needs through a partnership that includes free outdoor wireless internet in downtown South Bend.

Several years ago, the Community Foundation established the Connected Communities initiative in partnership with Mike Bieganski, a retired senior VP of information technology for Bosch, and South Bend-based nonprofit fellowship program enFocus. The initial goal of Connected Communities was to hook up a handful of local nonprofits to the Metronet, the super-fast fiber optic network that loops around South Bend and Mishawaka.

It soon became clear, though, that these charities needed more than just Metronet access. Many had decades-old equipment; others had no dedicated IT staff and struggled to meet basic computing needs.

In response, Biegnaski and enFocus developed nCloud, a subsidiary unit

of enFocus that manages shared IT services for area charities. With support from the Community Foundation and other funding partners—including the James and Marjorie Wilson Family, the Judd Leighton Foundation, enFocus, and the City of South Bend—nCloud provides more than 20 local charities with a range of IT services, including high-speed internet, joint purchasing of technology, IP telephony, and free consulting on tech issues. It’s been a boon for local charities, which often struggle with technology planning, implementation, and costs.

St. Margaret’s House, a day shelter for women and children, is an example. Before becoming involved with nCloud, says Kathy Schneider, executive director of Saint Margaret’s House, the

HIGHLIGHTS

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For many charities, technology needs can drain scarce resources. The Community Foundation is helping fund an initiative that makes technology more affordable for local nonprofit organizations.

Rose Meissner [right], president of the Community Foundation, with Foundation friends Virginia Calvin [left] and Steven Watts at the Foundation’s 2015 Annual Meeting & Celebration.

It’s been a boon for local charities, which often struggle with technology planning, implementation, and costs.

What a year for the Community Foundation! After the tremendous success of Give Local St. Joseph County, our 24-hour fundraising event on May 5 which raised $6.7 million for our community’s best charities, our total assets have now grown past $160 million. And that makes a big impact on our community.

Each year, the Community Foundation returns more than $5 million to the community in the form of grants, supporting causes and organizations that matter—our Early Years Count education initiative, our work in arts and culture, the African American Community Fund, and projects that support local seniors, such as the Music & MemorySM program. This year, Community Foundation scholarships are helping more than 300 young people attend college. One of the largest in Indiana, the Community Foundation of St. Joseph County ranks among the top 100 community foundations nationally.

We’re making St. Joseph County a better place to live for all, now and forever. Learn more about the Community Foundation—including how you can get involved—at www.cfsjc.org.

COMMUNITY FOUNDATION OF ST. JOSEPH COUNTY • PAGE 2

A young couple decides to honor the memory of three special grandfathers by creating a scholarship fund.

When Kyle Chamberlin and Katie Hummer decided to get married, they knew that three beloved family members wouldn’t be able to attend their wedding: Kyle’s maternal grandfather Howard Hull, Katie’s paternal grandfather James Hummer, and Katie’s maternal grandfather Theodore Snider, all of whom had passed away. Family is tremendously important to Kyle and Katie, and, as they joined their lives together, the young couple wanted to find a way to include and honor these three special men.

To do that, they decided to create an endowed scholarship fund with the Community Foundation: the Hull, Hummer, and Snider (HHS) Memorial Scholarship Fund.

Although Katie and Kyle didn’t become a couple until they were in their 20s, their families had been connected for years. Grandpa Snider was the long-time minister at Albright United Methodist in Mishawaka, which is next door to the home where Kyle’s father grew up and his paternal grandparents still live. Their mothers played flute together in the Mishawaka High School Band, and both families attended the same church for several years when Kyle and Katie were children.

With these family ties in mind, the idea for the scholarship was one of the first wedding details the couple discussed. Rather than create a traditional gift registry, they asked their

Focusing on Our Donors: Katie and Kyle Chamberlin

Katie and Kyle Chamberlin, pictured with photos of the three grandfathers whom they’ve memorialized through the Hull, Hummer, and Snider Memorial Scholarship Fund.

You can honor the memory of a loved one by creating a scholarship fund at the Community Foundation (minimum commitment of $25,000). Call Rose Meissner, president, at (574) 232-0041.

guests to consider contributing to the HHS Scholarship Fund. Their guests responded positively and generously; the fund will likely make its first award within the next two years.

“While the initial awards will be modest, we hope to significantly grow both the size and number of scholarships as our resources allow,” Katie says.

A scholarship that would benefit local students seemed like a natural fit for a couple who completed all of their education right here in St. Joseph County. In 2002, Kyle received a Lilly Community Endowment Scholarship, which paid for his undergraduate tuition at Notre Dame. Education has been a transformative element in Kyle and Katie’s lives, and they hope that the HHS Scholarship Fund will help open doors for future generations of local scholars.

Katie and Kyle plan to make the HHS Scholarship Fund a philanthropic priority for many decades to come.

“With the stability and professional resources of the Community Foundation, we’re pleased to know that our grandfathers will be remembered even after we’re no longer around to share their stories,” says Kyle.

Rather than create a traditional gift registry, they asked their guests to consider contributing to the HHS Scholarship Fund.

Katie and Kyle plan to make the HHS Scholarship Fund a philanthropic priority for many decades to come.

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Organizational Endowment Funds Added to the Community Foundation in 2015

More than 80 funds within the Community Foundation provide ongoing annual support for our area’s best charities—permanently.

For most charities, fundraising is an ongoing struggle. Significant time and effort goes into raising money to cover expenses for the upcoming year; once that’s done, the process begins again. It’s a relentless cycle that can divert energy from the charity’s primary mission.

Luckily, there’s a solution: Endowment. Endowment funds contain assets that are invested permanently, focusing on long-term growth.

The Community Foundation holds more than 80 of these organizational endowment funds for local charities in social services, education, the arts, and other areas. Each year, the charity that each fund benefits receives a distribution, which can be used however it’s needed.

On May 5 of this year, more than 50 of those charities participated in Give Local St. Joseph County. This 24-hour fundraising event—the first of its kind

in our community—provided them with an unprecedented opportunity to grow their endowment funds. Because of generous matching dollars provided by the Community Foundation’s donors and friends, a total of more than $4 million was added to the endowment funds of the participating charities, and an additional $2.7 million went to those charities for immediate use.

Give Local, however, won’t become an annual event, and for charities looking to create an endowment fund, the initial amount needed—$25,000—can be daunting. What’s the best way for a charity to launch and grow a brand-new endowment fund? A challenge grant, says Rose Meissner, president of the Community Foundation.

“It’s a powerful way for an organization to attract additional support from existing donors and reach out to new ones,” she says. “I’ve seen it work for many local charities—the CASIE Center, Unity Gardens, and others.”

Organizational Endowment Funds: Helping Local Charities Thrive

Broadway Theatre League of South Bend Fund

The CASIE Center Fund

El Campito Child Development Center Fund

La Casa de Amistad Fund

Marian High School Fund

Pet Refuge/ABC Clinic Fund

South Bend Youth Symphony Orchestras Fund

Unity Gardens Fund

WVPE Public Radio Friends Fund

Make a gift that lasts to your favorite charity’s fund: Find the list under the For Donors tab at the Foundation’s website: www.cfsjc.org.

What’s the best way for a charity to launch and grow a new fund? A challenge grant, says Rose Meissner.

Left: El Campito Child Development Center established a fund with the Community Foundation in 2015.

Currently, Pet Refuge/ABC Clinic is working to build its new endowment fund with a challenge grant. Each dollar the charity raises up to $25,000 will be matched by an anonymous donor.

“It makes the case considerably more compelling,” Meissner explains, “when each dollar you give is doubled.” Also, she adds, the concept of endowment appeals to many donors.

“Savvy donors think long term,” she says. “They want their support to last.”

Currently, Pet Refuge/ABC Clinic is working to build its new endowment fund with a challenge grant.

Below: Unity Gardens established a fund with the Community Foundation in 2015.

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Learn more about grants from the Community Foundation are making our community a better place: www.cfsjc.org.

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The Community Foundation’s 2015- 2016 General Scholarship Application is now available on our website: www.cfsjc.org. That’s the application that includes the Laidig Community Service Scholarship, the Charles Martin “Touch a Life” Scholarship, and the Lilly Community Endowment Scholarship. Applying for these scholarships may make students eligible for other opportunities, too. Visit the website for more information and deadlines.

CFSJC Scholarship Applications Online

organization’s phone system was so outdated that she couldn’t find anyone who knew how to fix it. Now, St. Margaret’s House has access to high-speed internet and a new phone system.

Staff can work more efficiently, and the women served by Saint Margaret’s House benefit, too.

“Our guests can access job and school sites through the dedicated guest phone and computer bank,” Schneider says.

It’s been good for larger charities, too. Josh Gregory, director of IT for Center for Hospice Care, says that by connecting to the Metronet through nCloud, Hospice has been able to create better synergy among its six campuses.

“Before, our separate offices felt like silos,” Gregory says. “This has really woven our organization together.”

It’s only possible, he adds, because charities can afford nCloud’s rates. Costs for Metronet access through nCloud are less than a tenth of what a commercial provider would charge.

More than 20 other charities work with nCloud, including Goodwill, REAL Services, Center for the Homeless, LOGAN, and Family & Children’s Center. All area 501(c)3 organizations are eligible for nCloud’s services. Requests are filled in the order received, according to capacity.

The Connected Communities initiative has made a huge impact, says Rose

Meissner, president of the Community Foundation. She credits Bieganski.

“While the money the Community Foundation and the others partners chipped in was necessary to make this happen, Mike Bieganski was absolutely essential to this project,” says Meissner. “Mike is a brilliant man. Since he retired from Bosch, he’s been using his amazing IT skills in all sorts of wonderful ways.”

While local charities are the primary beneficiaries of the initiative, all of downtown South Bend stands to gain from the initiative’s next step: Free outdoor wireless internet, which will be up and running by the end of 2015.

Future plans include extending the wireless footprint to include areas such as school zones, hoping to reduce the “digital divide” among those with internet access and those without.

All of downtown South Bend stands to gain from the initiative’s next step: Free outdoor wireless internet.

Laidig Scholar Laylaa Jojo-Cunningham, shown at her internship with REAL Services