The Niagara Community Foundation offers a number of ways to support our community's well-being. We have a variety of funds available for our donors to consider. Many of them are open funds where gifts may be made by any interested contributor at any time thereby allowing even modest contributions to be joined with others' gifts for maximum charitable benefit.
The Niagara Fund
Comprised of donations, large and small, from a variety of sources, individuals, corporations and foundations. A donation to this fund gives the Foundation the greatest flexibility. The earnings on this fund enable our Board of Directors to respond to current community needs through the provision of grants to charities throughout the Niagara Region or in a local community.
Local Community Funds
They have been established for St. Catharines, Thorold, Niagara Falls, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Welland, Niagara West, Lincoln, Grimsby, Wainfleet, Pelham, Fort Erie and Port Colborne. Donors can establish a named fund within any Community Fund with a $5,000 gift.
Smart & Caring Funds
As we approach our country’s 150th birthday in 2017, Governor General David Johnson has challenged Canadian to imagine our country as it could be – a ‘smart and caring nation’ that holds promise for everyone.In Niagara, we are joining community foundations from across Canada and rising to the challenge by creating sector-specific Smart & Caring Community Fund. Local champions have come forward to help us promote the future impact that these funds will have in Niagara.
Click below to read more about our local champions, our Smart & Caring Community Funds and the impact that we’ve had in Niagara to date.
Smart & Caring Children & Youth Fund
Smart & Caring Education & Leadership Fund
Smart & Caring Environment Legacy Fund
Smart & Caring Health & Wellbeing Fund
Smart & Caring Cultural Endowment Fund
A Designated Fund
Donors have the opportunity to specify, at the time the fund is established, which particular charities to support in perpetuity. If unexpectedly, an organization ceases to exist, we can redirect the fund to support a similar cause. The minimum donation to open a designated fund is $10,000 per beneficiary.
A Donor-Advised Fund
Donors are able to have ongoing participation in the selection of charities that will benefit from the fund. Donors may choose this type of fund instead of creating a family trust or private foundation. Existing foundations may transfer their assets to the Niagara Community Foundation to reduce administration while still remaining involved in allocating grants. The minimum donation to open a donor-advised fund is $25,000.
Charitable Organization Endowment Funds
They can be created and administered by the Foundation on behalf of registered charities. This allows the organization freedom from investment responsibility and gives donors the confidence of knowing that a permanent foundation is in place to professionally administer the charity's endowment. Once established, the charity can encourage their donors to contribute to their endowment fund. The minimum donation to open this type of fund is $10,000.
Community Impact Funds
They work much like our Community Fund, except that donors identify an area of interest that they would like to target their support. Examples include the arts, heritage, environment, health, seniors, children, recreation, relief of poverty, or education. With these funds, the donor defines the area of interest but empowers the Foundation's Grantmaking Committee to select worthwhile projects to support. The minimum donation to open a community impact fund is $25,000.
Emerging Funds
Donors are able to establish a fund in any of the above categories with an initial donation and a pledge to meet one of the minimum donation levels as described above within ten years of the initial gift, either on a monthly or annual basis. The earnings generated will be invested back into the fund until such time as the pledge is fulfilled