Members of the Evangeline Parish Chamber of Commerce along with other members of the community met Thursday at The Hatchery in Vidrine for the latest in the lunch and learn series.
The topic this time around was charitable donations through the Evangeline Parish Foundation which is an affiliate of the Community Foundation of Acadiana.
President and Chief Executive Officer of Community Foundation of Acadiana Raymond Hebert stated the Evangeline Foundation was created in 2017 and the three lead philanthropists were Investar Bank, Anita Fontenot, and Gene and Joan Fontenot.
Hebert said of the parish’s foundation, “It’s part of Community Foundation of Acadiana. You’re essentially plugging into a bigger, broader entity that can provide a back office to make this thing big and significant for Evangeline Parish.”
The Evangeline Foundation consists of community savings accounts and individual charitable checking accounts. As Hebert explained, “The community savings accounts are a fund for all things Evangeline Parish and provide a permanent funding mechanism that is governed by the board.”
He continued, “By contrast, the individual charitable checking accounts are exclusively under the donor’s control.”
Hebert added the funds are set up at any size by residents and natives of Evangeline Parish.
The Community Foundation of Acadiana, according to Hebert, was created in 2000 and is “a unique donor centric entrepreneurial organization.” He added, “We’re in the business of growing and enhancing philanthropy. We exist to benefit organizations, churches, schools, non-profit organizations, communities, and even our region.”
He chronicled the different options of setting up funds through the foundation, but “the bulk of the activity is stewardship.”
“It all starts with donors and what’s of interest to them. It could be anything from education, to a particular school, to churches, or to greenspaces,” said Hebert.
He continued, “Folks come to us and set up funds that they name with their resources that they direct. Every fund is customizable and different. The donors are intimately involved in their grant making as they choose to be. From these funds, donors make distributions to various non-profit organizations or communities.”
Of these funds, as Hebert explained, the most popular are donor advised funds. “They are like a charitable savings account,” he said. “People put money in the account, and they realize a deduction. Then, they distribute these dollars any time, any year in any amount to any non-profit, church, or school.”
Hebert concluded about the foundation, “We’re here to help Evangeline Parish, and we’re here to create something good for Evangeline Parish.”
Civic Leadership Coordinator of Community Foundation of Acadiana Lauren Breaux Coffin then explained the second annual South Louisiana Giving Day.
She said the day “is an online fundraising tool to be used by non-profit organizations, churches, and schools.”
The Giving Day is set for Thursday, May 9. “It’s a 24-hour online fundraising event,” said Coffin. “The goal is to get communities to come together and contribute as many charitable dollars as possible.”
As Coffin explained, organizations wishing to participate can set up profiles on the Giving Day’s website. She said, “We’re directing donors to that website, and donors are able to scroll through and see all the participating organizations.”
She further likened the website to “a non-profit directory” and to “an Amazon cart.”
Coffin said, “You can add organizations to your cart. You can donate different amounts to each organization. It’s really simple, and it’s really easy to use.”
For those less tech savvy, Coffin explained donors can either pay with traditional checks or through their donor directed funds.
The registration deadline for South Louisiana Giving Day is March 1. There will be an orientation meeting for organizations wishing to participate on Tuesday, February 5, at 9:30 a.m. at The Hatchery.
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TONY MARKS Associate Editor