GIFTS
CHANGING LANES:
GIFT VII SUPPORTS COMMUNITY GIVING Donors supported The Community Foundation with increased giving this year. Gifts totaled more than $4 million, a high mark in the last decade. The increase in gifts, in part, was due to Lilly Endowment Inc.’s announcement of a matching grant opportunity through their Giving Indiana Funds for Tomorrow (GIFT) initiative. GIFT VII was announced in October. For every unrestricted dollar raised by The Community Foundation, Lilly Endowment would match the gift with two dollars, up to $1 million. Donors stepped up to create and grow named unrestricted funds. By the end of 2018, six new named unrestricted funds were established to capture the match. More than 150 donors made match-eligible gifts to The Unrestricted Fund of The Community Foundation and other named unrestricted funds. More than 72 percent of the match was met in gifts and pledges. However, GIFT VII was just one of many reasons the Foundation saw increased giving. In total, 19 new funds were established. Four new scholarship funds were established to support students pursuing post-secondary education. The Successful Schools Fund and the Old National Bank Fund for Muncie Community Schools were both established to support the partnership brought about by state legislation between Ball State University and Muncie Community Schools. Other funds support community organizations across Muncie and Delaware County. 8
