Arkansas Cornbread Festival Mascot on April 7, 2016

If you haven’t heard, we recently announced big news for ArkansasGives. The third and final day of giving will be April 6, 2017. We’re excited to see the generosity of Arkansans exceed our expectations, yet again!

Since we’ve heard questions about why 2017 will be the last year, we wanted to take some time to explain why the Community Foundation made this decision.

Arkansas Community Foundation works to meet community needs by making grants and sharing knowledge. We support programs that work and we partner to create new initiatives that address the gaps. ArkansasGives is one way we support programs across the state and partner with nonprofits in the valuable work they’re doing. Thanks to the generosity of thousands who wish to do the same, over six MILLION dollars has been deployed to support programs that are working to address the needs in Arkansas. That’s amazing!

We know that Arkansans are generous. By sponsoring a vehicle to help nonprofits tell their story and raise money in a simple but effective way, we believed ArkansasGives could help build the nonprofit sector and its capacity to continue making change happen.

As we began planning ArkansasGives, we set some big goals for the event:

  1. We wanted to get people excited about giving to nonprofits at a time other than the traditional year-end.
  2. We believed that expanding nonprofits’ capacities for marketing and fundraising would help them take full advantage of social media and online giving to achieve their missions
  3. We wanted to help increase awareness of the impact of nonprofits and their programs statewide.

From the beginning, ArkansasGives was not designed as an ongoing annual event. We believe that after this third event, ArkansasGives has run its course. You may ask why stop a good thing? We believe that all of goals will be met after this third year, and that nonprofits will have the tools they need to continue the good channeled by ArkansasGives.

There are so many stories of impact. As you browse the list of top money raisers and those who had the most numbers of donations from 2015 and 2016, you’ll see nonprofits of all sizes that raised funds for programs or initiatives impacting their local communities in critical ways. Behind those dollars are individuals who have a passion to support the wonderful things that are happening in the nonprofit sector in our state.

The Community Foundation is excited to think about what will follow. Before ArkansasGives, some of our initiatives included Write for Arkansas, Aspire Arkansas and the Stop Hunger initiative. We can’t wait to unveil what’s next!

What do you think 2017 will bring? Stay tuned for when we announce our BIG goal in February. Help us spread the word that nonprofits can start signing up Oct. 1!

Richard & Thelma Lambert

Thelma Lambert had been a resident of Carroll County for a little more than ten years when she passed away in early April, but she and her husband Richard ensured their legacy will never be forgotten thanks to the generous provision of their charitable endowment.

Their story speaks to the power of giving – something that they experienced personally as Hurricane Katrina refugees.

It was August 2005 and the massive hurricane was churning in the Gulf. Richard and Thelma watched as neighbors and friends packed up their belongings and headed north in fear Katrina would hit the Mississippi coastline they called home. The Lamberts hesitated. They were happily living in a house they built themselves in Ansley, Mississippi and life was good. Richard, especially, did not want to leave, hoping the hurricane would turn or lessen in intensity. Thelma knew it was finally time to go.

“I started packing but he refused. I asked him to go watch the news for a bit longer and then decide,” Thelma said in an interview in 2014. “It didn’t take long before he very quietly started loading up the truck, working around the outside of the house securing latches and so forth,” she added.

On that Saturday they drove to Meridian and Jackson, finding no vacancies along the way. With lodging scarce in every direction, they decided to drive all the way to Eureka Springs, Arkansas where they often spent vacations. There, they knew, they would find lodging and safety.

When they arrived, Richard went to the police station in Eureka Springs to let them know they were safe. “Everybody had gone in so many directions; no one knew where anyone was,” Thelma said.

But there was no escaping the awful news – their house had been destroyed – water was above their roof. “We lost it all,” said Thelma.

The Lambert’s house after Hurricane Katrina hit Ansley, MS.

What happened after that seemed like a series of small miracles. “Everybody we met was willing to help us,” Thelma recalled.

A female police officer had been listening to Richard’s story and told him about an unfurnished apartment she thought they might like. Not too long after that, she offered to take the Lamberts over to see it. “We walked in expecting to see an empty room, and instead it was totally furnished with furniture and food, clothes in the closet and even toothbrushes and toothpaste! All we had to do was walk in.”

When Carroll County locals heard their story, they helped with grocery bills, cash and provided household items to sustain them. “People were so good to us,” she added.

When the insurance on their home and property loss was finally settled, the Lamberts discussed rebuilding in Mississippi but decided to settle in Berryville, Arkansas instead, just a few miles east of Eureka Spring. By then, they had come to love Carroll County.

After Richard’s passing in 2013, and touched by the continuing generosity of the community, Thelma decided it was time to return the favor. With the help of her professional advisor and the executive director of the local Arkansas Community Foundation affiliate, she created the Richard and Thelma Lambert Charitable Endowment with the proceeds from their life insurance policy.

Beginning this Fall, the first grants from the Richard and Thelma Lambert Charitable Endowment will begin supporting both the Meals on Wheels program (through the Carroll County Senior Activity Center), and the Loaves and Fishes Food Bank in Carroll County. Every year after, these programs will remember the generosity of the Lamberts as their endowment gives back to those who had helped them in their time of need.

Funding Source/Title:
Blue & You Foundation for a Healthier Arkansas
Regular grants from $5,000 to $150,000 for health projects in Arkansas

Deadline:
July 15, 2016

Purpose:
Grants to fund any health-improvement program in Arkansas, to be implemented during calendar year 2017. Applicants are notified of decision in mid-November, and grants are distributed in December 2016.

Eligibility Criteria:
Any 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, public school, church, nonprofit hospital or governmental organization in Arkansas is eligible.

Contact Information:
Online application found at www.BlueAndYouFoundationArkansas.org.
Patrick O’Sullivan, 501-378-2221.

John Denver, Sonny Bono, Jimi Hendrix, Prince.   This is not a nostalgic trip to the 1970’s. What these well-known figures unfortunately have in common is that they all died without wills and other directives.  Whether the consequences to your loved ones are simply a drawn out expensive wait or an airing of family business, the cost to your legacy can be substantial.   Most of us fully intend to leave our mark by benefitting those we care about and our favorite causes after we are gone.  We work hard, we save and invest, and what’s left afterward goes to the people and issues we care about, right?  Not necessarily. 

Many circumstances can cause an unprotected legacy to derail.  Whether it is intestacy laws (in other words, if you don’t have a will, the state will make one for you) that favor a person that you would not have selected or confusion over end-of-life decisions, a lack of clarity is never a good idea. 

According to a 2015 RocketLawyer survey, 64% of Americans do not have a will.  This statistic covers all socio-economic lines and the reasons run the gamut.  “I am too young” or “I don’t have the time or money to make a will” — whatever the hesitation, we should remember this:  those important to us do not get a “do-over” once we are incapacitated or gone, and we never know when that time will be. 

A simple will and basic healthcare instructions are the foundations of protecting the legacy you want to leave.  Whether you seek to benefit others or merely seek to live out your own days the way you intend, those left behind require guidance that should come from you.  Now is the time to protect your legacy.

Contact your professional advisor or local law school for further assistance and give us a call about how the Community Foundation can work with you on determining your giving goals.

Beyond fragrant Peonies and Pandora charms, how do we show our appreciation for all the support our mothers have shown us? I mean, can flowers or jewelry rightfully express our gratitude for the blood, sweat and tears they poured into our lives?

Last fall, on her 90th birthday, one family decided to honor their mother with a gift to a nonprofit that has been a gift to her—LifeQuest of Arkansas. When Greer Grace approached LifeQuest about setting up an endowment in honor of her mother Barbara Woods Baber, Executive Director Ann Leek quickly began looking for an organization to house this substantial gift. Arkansas Community Foundation was available to partner with the nonprofit to fulfill the family’s wishes. 

Greer Grace and her brothers chose LifeQuest because of its commitment to fostering a continued passion for living and learning. Their father attended memory classes after his Alzheimer’s diagnosis, and they believe their mother has “a whole new life and a sparkle in her eye” thanks to LifeQuest. Baber herself bemoans that many seniors grow accustom to discussing their ailments and prescriptions, but LifeQuest delivers the opportunity to discuss stimulating topics. Leek raves that Baber “embodies the spirit of LifeQuest at its core—enhancing one’s later years through lifelong learning, social connections and meaningful service to others.”

Greer Grace, with her mother Barbara Baber

Grace adds that she feels extra comfort in knowing that the Barbara Woods Baber Endowment for LifeQuest of Arkansas will be financially stewarded by the Community Foundation so that the funds will provide long-term support for a cause that has been very important to the family.

Baber has been involved with LifeQuest since its beginning—she and Grace have even taught a “Nifty After Fifty” class together—and the endowment ensures a legacy for a place she loves. Baber added that there wasn’t anything she would have rather had. She states, “the gift is exciting to me because I can see it now, and know that it will keep on giving!”

So if you are still looking for a gift for your mom this Mother’s day, consider making a gift.

Does tax season get you thinking about your giving habits from the previous year? Did you set any goals, and most importantly, do you feel like you reached them? The end of the year tends to sneak up on people who want to make their tax-deductible donations. They find themselves rushing around to make a donation they had been intending to make for a while or they hastily decide to give without really considering long-term benefits. Either way, tax time may get you thinking about the impact of your charitable giving last year and how you can better prepare for the upcoming year-end.

We’re a quarter of the way through 2016, so there’s no better time than NOW to start thinking about how your charitable dollars can make a big difference in your community. If you want to build a nonprofit’s capacity because you believe in their mission, then you should start by researching their needs and checking out their website. If you hope to fund programs that address gaps like hunger and education, now is the time to consider the many different ways your charitable giving goals can play a role helping those programs succeed. 

Whatever your hopes are for giving charitably, the Community Foundation is here to help. We can work with you in several different ways:

  1. Help you find your giving niche. Why do you like to give, and what are you passionate about? Do you know about all of the good work happening around our state? We can start the conversation to help you identify the areas where you want your donations to make a difference.
  2. Research nonprofits. We can talk to you about nonprofits doing good work in our communities across the state. We stay in contact with a variety of nonprofits throughout the year, whether that’s through ArkansasGives or through our annual grant programs.
  3. Form a plan. We can help you set charitable giving goals. Our staff will sit down with you to map out a plan based on your interests and the needs that you want to meet in your community. Creating a fund at the Community Foundation ensures a permanent way to give to the causes you care about.
  4. Grant from your fund. If you have a fund with the Community Foundation, we manage the granting process. When you set up a fund with us, we help you determine the best way to grant to the programs you want to help.

If you’re interested in forming a plan now so that you don’t have to stress about it later, give us a call and we would be glad to set a time to talk with you. Bring the whole family, if you’d like!

Contact Ashley Coldiron or learn more about the different ways you can give with the Community Foundation.

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (April 15, 2016) – Arkansas Community Foundation today announced the certified results of the ArkansasGives program, a one-day giving event on April 7 that resulted in $4.6 million for nonprofits statewide. Checks for their portion of the proceeds will be mailed to the nonprofits by early May.

About 600 nonprofits statewide participated in ArkansasGives, raising a total of $4,117,786.67 from the 11,943 donors who made 18,535 online contributions through ArkansasGives.org. With the addition of prize money from First Security Bank and bonus dollars from Arkansas Community Foundation, a total of $4,604,786.67 will be distributed to participating nonprofits.

“I can’t say it enough – I’m amazed at the generosity of Arkansans,” said Heather Larkin, Community Foundation CEO. “The average donation size was $278, but many of the gifts were near the $25 minimum level. And 22 percent of the donors made gifts to more than one charity.”

All participating nonprofits will receive a share of a $400,000 bonus pool provided by Arkansas Community Foundation. The pool will be split among the nonprofits on a pro-rated basis; for example, if an organization raised 1 percent of the total received on April 7, that organization would receive a corresponding 1 percent of the bonus pool ($4,000).

First Security Bank contributed $60,000 in prize money for nonprofits that raised the most dollars and received the most individual donations. The certified winners of the First Security Bank grand prizes, along with their prize amounts, are:

Small Nonprofit – Most Dollars

  • Go Near Ministry, $5,000
  • A-Camp, Inc., $3,000
  • Loaves & Fishes Food Bank of the Ozarks, Inc., $2,000

Small Nonprofit – Most Donations

  • Lucie’s Place – $5,000
  • Central Arkansas Library System Foundation – $3,000
  • A-Camp, Inc. – $2,000

Mid-size Nonprofit – Most Dollars

  • Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival – $5,000
  • Soaring Wings Ranch – $3,000
  • Clear Spring School, Inc. – $2,000

Mid-size Nonprofit – Most Donations

  • Maggie House – $5,000
  • Soaring Wings Ranch – $3,000
  • The CALL – $2,000

Large Nonprofit – Most Dollars

  • Arkansas Symphony Orchestra – $5,000
  • Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families – $3,000
  • Our House, Inc. – $2,000

Large Nonprofit – Most Donations

  • Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families – $5,000
  • Arkansas Single Parent Scholarship Fund – $3,000
  • Arkansas Foodbank – $2,000

This year a new set of prizes (amounts listed below), for most dollars raised between 6 and 7 p.m. in the Power Hour were awarded to:

Small Nonprofit

  • Faulkner County SPCA – $3,000
  • Together for Hope Arkansas – $2,000
  • Go Near Ministry – $1,000

Mid-size Nonprofit

  • Maggie House – $3,000
  • David E. Puryear Center – $2,000
  • Hispanic Community Services, Inc. – $1,000

Large Nonprofit

  • Arkansas Symphony Orchestra – $3,000
  • Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families – $2,000
  • Arkansas Arts Center – $1,000

Nonprofit category prizes (amounts listed below) were awarded to organizations that raised the most dollars in their categories of service:

  • Faith Based – Go Near Ministry, $1,000
  • Animal Welfare – Faulkner County SPCA, $1,000
  • Economic Development – Main Street Dumas, Inc., $1,000
  • Environment – Audubon Arkansas, $1,000
  • Human Services – Soaring Wings Ranch, $1,000
  • Education – Clear Springs School, Inc., $1,000
  • Health – Arkansas Hospice Foundation, $1,000
  • Community & Civic Engagement/Public & Social Benefit – Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families, $1,000
  • Arts & Humanities – Arkansas Symphony Orchestra, $1,000

Two ArkansasGives partners who help make the event possible are the Arkansas Nonprofit Alliance and AT&T, which hosted the headquarters for the April 7 event. Media partners like THV 11 in Little Rock, KAIT 8 in Jonesboro, KFSM TV 5 in Fort-Smith-Fayetteville, iHeart Media, the Arkansas Press Association, the Arkansas Broadcasters Association, Soiree magazine, and Jonesboro Occasions magazine help spread the word about this giving opportunity.

Arkansas Community Foundation offers tools to help Arkansans protect, grow and direct their charitable dollars as they learn more about community needs. By making grants and sharing knowledge, the Community Foundation supports charitable programs that work for Arkansas and partners to create new initiatives that address the gaps. Since 1976, the Community Foundation has provided more than $140 million in grants and partnered with thousands of Arkansans to help them improve our neighborhoods, our towns and our entire state. Contributions to the Community Foundation, its funds and any of its 27 affiliates are fully tax deductible.

Want to predict whether a child is likely to graduate from high school? Take a look at his or her third grade reading levels.

Research from the Annie E. Casey Foundation found that 16 percent of children who are not reading at grade level by third grade do not graduate high school on time – four times more than their peers who are reading-proficient in third grade.

Why? Angela Duran, coordinator for the Arkansas Campaign for Grade-Level Reading, explained: “Up until third grade, children are learning how to read. After that, they’re reading to learn.” Students need a strong foundation in the early grades in order to absorb the challenging new information they’ll receive in upper elementary and beyond.

This spring, we partnered with the Campaign for Grade-Level Reading to award grants to five programs across the state that are working to increase Grade 3 reading levels. Each of our grantees will be hosting camps to engage kids over the summer to prevent learning loss and help them keep making educational gains all summer long.

The grant recipients will be working with the Arkansas Out of School Network to receive technical support/training and get connected to a broader network of summer and after-school programs.

This year’s Summer Learning Initiative grant recipients are:

Booneville School District ($25,000) – to support the Summer Literacy Program, a four-week initiative that will immerse students in literacy and kinesthetic learning, including a daily enrichment activity connected to each literacy skill.

Mount Judea Area Alliance in Mount Judea, Ark. ($4,428) – to support the Mount Judea Summer Learning Camp, a once-a-week camp aimed at teaching children the rewards and pleasure of reading.

Ouachita Children’s Center in Hot Springs ($41,000) – to support the Summer Enrichment Program, a 10-week program focusing on reading, math, life skills and writing, featuring educational field trips and recreation events.

Park Avenue Elementary in Stuttgart ($25,000) – to support the Park Avenue Elementary Summer Learning Camp, aimed at providing students with the skills and confidence to be successful in literacy and become critical thinkers and lifelong learners.

YMCA of Hot Springs ($25,000) – to support the YMCA Summer Learning Loss Program at Lakeside Primary School, a six-week initiative that uses evidence-based instruction techniques to improve academic outcomes for rising Kindergarten and 1st Graders at risk for losing reading skills over the summer.

With so much interest in this funding program, we know that there’s strong demand from schools, parents and communities to provide quality summer programs that help kids make reading progress outside of school. 

What’s one easy way you can make a difference for your favorite charitable causes this spring? Mark your calendar for April 7, ArkansasGives Day! ArkansasGives is the 12-hour online giving event hosted by Arkansas Community Foundation. We’re challenging all Arkansans to make a donation to the charity of their choice on April 7, in recognition of the vital work our local nonprofits do in our communities!

Here are a few ways you can get ready for the big day:

  1. Get a text reminder when it’s time to give. Sign up by sending the word “ARGIVES” to 24587.
  2. Find out which nonprofits are participating. Did you know you can give to as many nonprofits as you want in a single credit card transaction? Go here to search for your favorite charities by name or location, or view the full list of all participants here.
  3. Help us spread the word! If you’re a social media user, you can join our “Thunderclap,” which is an online service that will automatically send out an ArkansasGives message from your Facebook or Twitter account on the big day, if you agree. Opting-in to the Thunderclap is an easy way to help spread the word about ArkansasGives, and the best part is that you don’t even have to remember to post a social media message – Thunderclap handles it for you!

Thanks for helping us Grow the Love for Arkansas Nonprofits on April 7!

The Fuller Family

Smart giving can bring future generations of your family together around shared values. Arkansas Community Foundation helps families give back by providing tools to help your family give together.

When asked what Philanthropy means to their family, the Fullers of Little Rock, Ark., explained to us that while they each have their own ideas about who should receive support, they’re sure that by working together they will make the right decisions. Read more about their family’s giving practices through the Barringer-Fuller Family Charitable Endowment at Arkansas Community Foundation.

What is philanthropy to your family?
Philanthropy has always been about giving a helping hand to those in need. We were always taught to help those less fortunate than ourselves and learned the joy of giving from our father, Paul. He supported music and arts, and later created a scholarship endowment with his brother Reed at Henderson University and was a lifelong supporter of his church in Gurdon by helping with buildings and donating pianos. He was someone who was always willing to help someone who was down on their luck.

To what extent do you give from the head versus the heart?
We actually chose to set up our charitable fund with Arkansas Community Foundation in order to gift in a more responsible and thoughtful way. With the Foundation’s help, we can make sure our contributions get to those most in need.

What would you like your children and grandchildren to learn about giving to others?
It is our hope that our children and grandchildren will continue to appreciate the importance of charitable giving by making a difference in others’ lives as well as their own by giving their time and resources to causes they care about.

What is philanthropy’s importance to society?
Charity should be considered a means to move people forward in life, not just a crutch to be relied on. 

What do you hope your family’s philanthropic legacy will be?
We hope to help create a better community and a better Arkansas by helping those most in need.

The Fuller family hopes that future generations will continue to appreciate the importance of making a difference in other people’s lives through their own giving. When asked about how they see their giving evolving, they hope to continue to build up their charitable fund so they can support larger donations and give back to nonprofits who are dedicated to using gifts to make an impact in their communities.