LaGrange Partners is an interagency meeting for nonprofit organizations and entities providing services to LaGrange County residents. Partners provides a forum for learning about resources, discussing current issues, networking, and keeping up to date on existing services.
The meeting is open to nonprofit staff, board members, volunteers and interested community members who want to connect and learn more about the nonprofit sector in LaGrange County.
LaGrange Partners meets every other month in various locations, from 11:30am-1pm. The meeting format includes time for lunch, agency announcements, networking, and a featured presentation on a focus topic. Each of the focus topics are scheduled for the year. You can find that schedule HERE.
LaGrange Partners is facilitated by the LaGrange County Community Foundation.
If you’d like to find out more information, or to sign up for the next meeting on Tuesday, June 13, go HERE. You can also see past minutes, resources, and agendas at that link as well.
Natalie graduated from Lakeland High School in 2010 and attended the nursing program at IPFW. She had 14 months left in her education when she passed away on October 18, 2013.
Natalie demonstrated love, respect, and compassion for others, and carried the belief that people are on earth to help each other. The Kauffman family established the scholarship to promote those ideals and support aspiring nurses and continue Natalie’s legacy of helping others.
This is a $1,000 scholarship that supports college students and non-traditional students pursuing a degree in nursing. And is available to students who have graduated from a LaGrange County high school or adults currently working in the healthcare field in LaGrange County.
This is a great opportunity to get some extra financial help. Be sure to share this information with someone who would have the above qualifications and would be able to use this scholarship money for their degree.
Applications will be accepted until June 15, 2023.
To get the latest information about the LaGrange County Community Foundation, sign up for our e-Newsletter.
We publish our newsletter once a month with the latest things happening at LCCF: new scholarships, grants, events, awards, community happenings, volunteer information, and more.
When I started working for the LaGrange County Community Foundation, I heard a familiar question: “What is a Community Foundation?”
In my many years in the workforce, I have had a variety of jobs. Many that I do today as the Marketing & Community Engagement Manager. But working for a nonprofit in this capacity was new for me. So, this was a great question to answer for myself as well.
A community foundation is a tax-exempt, nonprofit organization composed, primarily, of permanent funds created by many separate donors for the long-term benefit of the residents of a specific geographic area. Our geographic focus is LaGrange County, Indiana.
Three things set us apart from other charities:
Permanent Endowment Building
Broad, Flexible Grantmaking; and
Community Leadership.
Through Permanent Endowment Building we develop and maintain relationships with our donors, investing and protecting the principal of our donor’s gifts, and distributing the earnings from these gifts based on the charitable intent of the donor.
Broad and Flexible Grantmaking is understanding our community’s needs, re-directing charitable dollars over time and as community needs change. We offer grant opportunities to local nonprofits and make investments in community needs.
Community Leadership can encompass many things. Our organization seeks to be proactive, connecting people and ideas for the purpose of solving problems, to educate, and to find ways to better serve our community.
We are led by a volunteer Board of Directors, who represent the communities of LaGrange County. They direct our strategic vision and make decisions regarding investment of assets, charitable distributions, donor relationships, new donor funds and growing assets.
The LaGrange County Community Foundation manages more than 140 unique funds, each created for a specific charitable purpose. The Community Foundation works with each donor to identify the purpose and goal of their fund and manages the fund long-term on behalf of the donor. Some funds provide annual grant support to local nonprofits, while others provide scholarships for graduating seniors.
There are several ways to give and support community needs through the Community Foundation. You can add money to an existing fund or create a new fund, your choice! You can donate to an organization or give to a specific cause or interest.
Click here to see a list of the Foundation’s charitable funds.
I hope this helps clarify things a little more! If you have ANY questions about the Community Foundation, how to give, about grants or scholarships, or even how you can volunteer, contact us HERE. We would love to assist you!
The writer of this post, Sarah Hostetler, starting working for the LaGrange County Community Foundation at the end of March 2023.
This week (April 16th- 22nd) is National Volunteer Week, and we thought it would be interesting to share some Volunteer statistics with you. These are from an article on Volunteer Hub.
One out of four American’s volunteer, two out of three American’s help their neighbor.
Individuals between the ages of 35 and 54 are the most likely to volunteer their time.
Volunteers are worth on average $28.54 an hour.
Volunteerism has a value of over $184 billion dollars.
Volunteerism improves health by strengthening the body, improving mood, and lessening stress.
Those who volunteer regularly have a 27% better chance of gaining employment.
60% of hiring managers see the act of volunteerism as a valuable asset when making recruiting decisions.
Volunteers under the age of 24 accounts for 22.6% of all volunteers.
Volunteers, on average, spend 50 hours per year donating their time to the greater good.
67% of people found volunteer opportunities online in 2014 vs 34% in 2006.
There are more than 1.8 billion active nonprofits in the United States alone.
66% of volunteers give their time to improve their community, 83% do so to contribute to a cause they care about.
People who volunteer over 100 hours a year are some of the healthiest people in the US.
28.2% of Millennials volunteer each year.
30.7% of Baby Boomers volunteer each year.
24.8% of Silent Generation Americans volunteer each year.
39.9% of parents volunteer each each.
Utah has the highest rate of volunteers in America (51%).
Volunteering decreases the likelihood of high blood pressure development by 40%.
96% of volunteers reported the action enriched their sense of purpose in life.
Every person who has helped another, with no expectation or payment in return, is a volunteer. We, in LaGrange County, count these volunteers as blessings. And it’s one of the many reasons our county is such a special place to live.
“Volunteering is at the very core of being a human. No one has made it through life without someone else’s help.” – Heather French Henry
Don’t forget, now through May 1st, we at LCCF are accepting applications of this county’s exemplary volunteers for the Heart of Gold Award. For more details and the application, go HERE.
Nonprofit Assistance Grants help LaGrange County nonprofits with needs in technology, training, operations, emergency, and awareness events. Last year (2023) was our first year of opening this grant program.
Nonprofit Assistance Grants are available to LaGrange County nonprofit organizations. These grants are made possible through the generosity of donors who have supported the unrestricted and field of interest charitable funds at the Foundation.
LaGrange County nonprofit organizations are eligible to apply for up to $2,500 in assistance in the following categories, but not limited to:
awareness events
emergency needs
operations
technology (includes software)
training/development
Fundraising projects, utilities, general operating expenses, or your organization’s regular programing are NOT eligible for Nonprofit Assistance Grants. Government agencies, public schools, and churches are not eligible for Nonprofit Assistance grants.
If you are unsure if your assistance project qualifies, please contact Program Director, Leanna Martin at lmartin@lccf.net or by calling 260-463-4363.
Grant Deadlines: Applications accepted on a rolling basis
Award notification will be made within 30 days of the application submission. Grants are awarded as funds are available. One grant award per organization. Applications will be accepted until October 31, 2023.
Want to Find Out More?
Go HERE to the Nonprofit Assistance Grants Page, for more information. To apply, scroll to the bottom of the page, and click “APPLY NOW“.
With the help from the community and United Way of Elkhart & LaGrange Counties, the LaGrange County Community Foundation was able to award $5,000 to the Mongo UMC Food Pantry.
Mongo UMC Food Pantry applied through the COVID-19 Rapid Response Grants online system. Their award was granted within a week and they will now be able to continue to serve over 75 families on a weekly basis. As many of you are aware, Mongo is one of our smaller eastern communities with about 200 residents.
It was clear to the Grants Committee that they were in need.
We understand these times are difficult and the uncertainty in the air is thick.
We are certain of one thing – our Commitment to Serving YOU and our community remains steadfast.
What can you do with $55,000? For the Knights of Pythias LaGrange Lodge no. 144 they made a last goodwill gift. The fraternal organization made the difficult decision to disband after 135 years.
The Knights sponsored Little League baseball teams, supported police departments
and gave to local nonprofits. At the Corn School street festival, the
Knight’s caramel
apples were a favorite treat and helped fund some of their charitable
endeavors.
Mahlon Bontrager, a Knight and former Community Foundation Board Member, encouraged the group to consider creating a permanent fund for the community. The timing for the Knight’s gift was serendipitous. One month before, Lilly Endowment announced a matching grant for the Community Foundation. Any gift to an unrestricted fund would be eligible for a 2-for-1 match. Inspired by the opportunity, the Knights created an unrestricted endowed fund to support community needs. What had been a gift of $55,000 now became $165,000.
Because
of their generosity, LaGrange County will continue to reap the reward. Income
from the fund will made available for grantmaking as directed by the Board of
Directors.
“The members of our Lodge no. 144 feel very
fortunate to have our donation grow and benefit several organizations thanks to
the LaGrange County Community Foundation,” says Gordon Olds, a member of the
Knights.
