It's the fund that keeps on giving

In 2000, the estate of Gladys Langroise created a $15 million Donor Advised Fund in the Idaho Community Foundation. Mrs. Langroise was a well-educated philanthropist with a big heart. She had a particular charitable interest in the arts and young people.

Since it was created, Mrs. Langroise’s fund has distributed more than $10 million to colleges, music programs, community art centers, schools and nonprofits that assist low-income children throughout Idaho. And there’s still more than $15 million left in the fund. That is the power of endowment and it’s also a powerful reminder of the good that is accomplished every single day with Donor Advised Funds.

On the national stage, Donor Advised Funds have recently been viewed in a negative light because of some high-profile examples that have caused people concern — concern that is shared by the staff and Board of Directors of the Idaho Community Foundation.

The Idaho Community Foundation completely agrees that Donor Advised funds — and all charitable funds — should be created to further the philanthropic intentions of people who want to benefit communities and organizations. We have processes in place to ensure that our Donor Advised Funds are distributing grants on a regular basis and that at least 51 percent of distributions benefit Idaho communities.

We hope the high-profile examples outside Idaho don’t overshadow the incredible good that is accomplished by Donor Advised Funds like the one Mrs. Langroise created, and the other 200 Donor Advised Funds in the Idaho Community Foundation.

Donor Advised Funds allow donors to create a charitable fund that is invested for the long- or short-term, depending on their style of giving. Long-term endowed funds, like the Langroise Fund, literally last forever and eventually give more in grants than the amount with which they were created.

The North Idaho Family Literacy Projects Fund in the Idaho Community Foundation is a Donor Advised Fund that has benefited this region. It was created in 2006 and has given grants of more than $148,000 to dozens of organizations, including the Panhandle Health District, St. Vincent DePaul North Idaho, Safe Passages and many others.

Its emphasis on family literacy projects ensures that children who struggle with reading can get the help they need with this foundational skill and improve their chances of success in school and in their lives.

And Donor Advised Funds are only one of the types of charitable funds offered by the Idaho Community Foundation and other community foundations throughout the country. At ICF, we have many types of funds that further the donor’s intent while at the same time addressing changing needs in our communities.

The Idaho Community Foundation is proud of the contributions we’ve made to communities of all sizes in our 30-year history. We’ve distributed nearly $114 million and our grantmaking reaches all 44 Idaho counties.

We hope that the actions by a small number of donors outside Idaho doesn’t discourage people who genuinely want to enrich the quality of life in our state from considering a Donor Advised Fund.

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Karen Bilowith is the Idaho Community Foundation president and CEO.