IN THIS ISSUE

FOUNDATION NEWS
A Message from our President & CEO
CFAAC’s Virtual 20th Anniversary Celebration of Philanthropy Honors Community Leaders and Offers Hope

MAKING A DIFFERENCE
Welcome to CFAAC
Supporting Anne Arundel County’s Children
Transform the Future

COMMUNITY IMPACT
Join CFAAC’s Community Leadership Circle 
Grants 4 Teachers Awards Nine Grants in Recent Cycle
Environmental Anne Arundel Grant Program Awards $13,500 in Grants
Women and Girls Fund Awards $13,360 in Grants

STRENGTHENING NONPROFITS
CFAAC Rolls Out Crisis Response Fund Phase II with Federal CARES Act Funds
The Fund for Community Healing
CFAAC Community Impact Series Presents: Fostering An Inclusive Environment
Community Grants

NEWS FOR PROFESSIONAL ADVISORS
The Power of Planning: Bundling, Bunching, and Bequests
The CARES Act and Community: Three 2020 Upsides

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FOUNDATION NEWS

A Message from our President & CEO

Wow. What a whirlwind these past few weeks have been – and all filled with wonderful news for CFAAC. Our first-ever virtual Celebration of Philanthropy Awards Ceremony was a huge success! Thank you to everyone who made it possible including our sponsors, partners, community members, staff, film crew, and virtual attendees. We celebrated 20 years of honoring our community heroes and philanthropists by recognizing 20 community difference makers. Their contributions continue to make our county better for all of us. Words cannot express just how grateful and proud I am of our staff for all of their hard work in helping to create this magnificent virtual event. If you didn’t have a chance to view the event, please visit www.cfaac.org. I know you’ll be impressed!

In other great news, we have partnered with Anne Arundel County Executive Steuart Pittman and the county to administer $1 million in grants to county nonprofits through Federal CARES Act funding. Applications will be accepted and grants awarded on a rolling basis beginning on November 12. Grants of up to $10,000 will be made to 100 to 150 local 501c3 nonprofits who meet the criteria and demonstrate a need for operational support due to financial losses relating to the pandemic, such as recent cancelled fundraising events, lower than expected fundraising support, lost program income, or increased expenses due to state-mandated COVID-19 restrictions. As the coronavirus surges on, these grants will help sustain our local nonprofits who continue to help our county residents tackle the challenges created by this pandemic.

As we near the end of 2020, it’s time to look forward. Recently, CFAAC staff and Board worked together to shape CFAAC’s 2021-2025 Strategic Plan that will serve CFAAC's mission well for the coming years. Our Community Foundation has grown in so many ways and I couldn’t be more optimistic as we look to the future. We met the goals of the 2017-2020 Strategic Plan and will, for the most part, continue in the direction of that approach with an enhanced focus on planned giving services for our donors, endowment growth, and increased attention on expanding the diversity of our donors, fund holders, board, and staff. The 2021-2025 plan will help to propel our momentum so we can continue to serve our county. It will be available on our website in early 2021.

We hope that you enjoy the Thanksgiving holiday.

Mary Spencer
President & CEO

CFAAC’s Virtual 20th Anniversary Celebration of Philanthropy Honors Community Leaders and Offers Hope

CFAAC commemorated 20 years of its Celebration of Philanthropy Awards by honoring 20 categories of philanthropists in Anne Arundel County on November 5, 2020. These awards recognized the people and groups who are there to drive change and make our community stronger. The event was live-streamed and included a series of pre-filmed awardee videos and video messages from community leaders.

“Celebrating 20 years of recognizing our community’s most generous individuals, families, and businesses was extremely important for us. We wanted to make the virtual experience as engaging and memorable as we possibly could during these challenging times,” said Mary Spencer, CFAAC President & CEO. “We couldn’t be more thankful for our sponsors, board members, event partners, staff members, attendees, and film crew for making this unprecedented event happen. We were thrilled to have so many people join us in applauding the impact that the awardees have made in our county. These difference makers are exactly the inspiration we need these days.” Read more about the 2020 Celebration of Philanthropy.

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MAKING A DIFFERENCE

Welcome to CFAAC

The Community Foundation of Anne Arundel County is thrilled to welcome the following to our family of funds:

• The Wisteria Fund: A Donor Advised Fund established to support the philanthropic interests of the founder, including but not limited to Women and Girls organizations in Anne Arundel County, arts organizations in Anne Arundel County, and Multiple Sclerosis (MS), Alzheimer's, and Dementia research organizations.

• The EWE Spirit Fund: A Donor Advised Fund established in memory of Geoff Ewenson to support organizations and programs that will continue Geoff’s legacy of helping those most in need.

Supporting Anne Arundel County’s Children

The needs of many of Anne Arundel County’s children aren’t being met and our community is rising to the challenge to find ways to support them.

-7.1% of Anne Arundel County children, under the age of 18, are living below the poverty level.
-In 2018, 1,260 homeless youth were identified in the county public school system.
-Childhood hunger continues to rise. The number of children receiving free breakfast and/or lunch has increased by 21% and 7%, respectively.

These are just a few of the reasons why CFAAC's Fund for Anne Arundel assists nonprofits that provide programs to help children thrive in school; improve their health, both mental and physical; and enhance their wellbeing and happiness. Our children are Anne Arundel County’s future. When you make a gift to support Fund for Anne Arundel, not only are you providing opportunities for children living in Anne Arundel County to be healthy, thriving, and successful, but you may also qualify for the Endow Maryland State Tax Credit. Endow Maryland is a state tax credit available to donors who give to a qualified endowed fund at a Maryland community foundation. Your gift grows in perpetuity and helps to meet critical needs and improve the quality of life for all county residents, now and in the future.

Gifts of at least $500 may qualify for a 25% state tax credit on your 2020 tax return. There are limited credits available, so we encourage anyone who is interested to contact us promptly. To learn more and browse our full list of endowed funds, visit cfaac.org/endow-maryland-tax-credits or contact Taylor Milbradt at Taylor@cfaac.org. 

CFAAC’s Community Leadership Circle Campaign Starts Now

This year has been especially tough on nonprofits who despite the pandemic, must carry on to help the needy in our community. And, CFAAC feels honored to be in a position to support them. While the majority of CFAAC’s time is spent looking outward into the community and doing all we can to support our county nonprofits, we also need to look inward to focus on ensuring that we meet our operational costs. CFAAC’s Community Leadership Circle, made up of generous donors who have committed gifts so we can continue serving our community in perpetuity, is an important part of that assurance. 

Through funds raised by the Community Leadership Circle Campaign, we can continue to make grants, attract donors, build endowments, offer philanthropic donor services, and present informative nonprofit programs. These funds can also help us to continue to be an advocate for local nonprofits and a catalyst for new ideas and community problem-solving.

Your support matters and we hope you will consider a gift to our Community Leadership Circle Campaign. To learn more about our Community Leadership Circle and our Community Leadership Initiatives, or to make a gift, click the donate button below, call 410-280-1102, or visit cfaac.org/community-leadership-circle to learn more.

Support CFAAC’s Community Leadership Circle

Grants 4 Teachers Awards Nine Grants in Recent Cycle

Teachers have had to face undeniable obstacles over the past year – keeping kids engaged in a classroom is tough enough and now that many schools have turned to remote and hybrid learning, it’s even more challenging. To help teachers create an engaging learning environment, CFAAC awarded nine grants in this cycle. 

The purpose of CFAAC's Grants 4 Teachers program is to fund highly creative ideas that would otherwise be impossible due to school system funding constraints. Under the circumstances of the pandemic, this grant is meant to help fund teachers' ideas to stimulate and inspire our students learning in the virtual and hybrid environments. The Grants 4 Teachers grants committee awards grants ranging from a minimum of $100 to a maximum of $500. To contribute or learn more about the nine programs that received grants in this cycle, click here.

Environmental Anne Arundel Grant Program Awards $13,500 in Grants

Anne Arundel County residents have enjoyed the outdoors more than ever this past year and environmental issues continue to be top of mind. To address issues such as stormwater management, and/or increasing community awareness and involvement in the restoration and protection of the Chesapeake Bay, local streams and rivers, and other natural areas, the Environmental Anne Arundel Grant Program recently awarded four grants, totaling $13,500. 

As part of the grant agreement, the organizations are required to submit a follow-up report and document progress, successes and barriers to success, and identify outcomes. To contribute or learn more about more about the four programs that received grants in this cycle, click here.

Women and Girls Fund Awards $13,360 in Grants 

Grants from the Women and Girls Fund are used to support nonprofits that help women and girls pursue positive, productive lives by helping remove barriers, increasing their economic security, enhancing their well-being and safety, and empowering them to make positive life decisions for themselves and their families.

Recently, the Women and Girls Fund awarded three grants, totaling $13,360. As part of the grant agreement, the organizations are required to submit a follow-up report and document progress, successes and barriers to success, and identify outcomes. To contribute or learn more about the three programs that received grants in this cycle, click here.

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STRENGTHENING NONPROFITS

CFAAC Rolls Out Crisis Response Fund Phase II with Federal CARES Act Funds

CFAAC, using $1 million in COVID-19 Relief Federal CARES Act Funding from Anne Arundel County, is administering this grant program to provide financial assistance to eligible nonprofits that sustained a loss of income/revenue and/or an increase of expenses due to COVID-19 impacts on their operations and communities. Applications will be accepted and grants awarded on a rolling basis starting on November 12. Grant requests of up to $10,000 will be reviewed on an ongoing basis, until the December 15th deadline or until the $1 million of funding has been awarded.  

Anne Arundel County 501c3 nonprofits can receive up to $10,000 through the program if they meet criteria and demonstrate a need for financial support, such as recently cancelled fundraising events, lower than expected fundraising support, lost program income or increased expenses due to state-mandated COVID-19 restrictions.

CARES Act Funding - Learn More & Apply

The Fund for Community Healing

The Fund for Community Healing was created out of the generosity of individual donors, businesses, and foundations in response to the tragic shooting at the Capital Gazette news office on June 28, 2018.

The Fund was established in honor of the Capital Gazette newspaper employees and their families, and grants will be awarded to organizations that can provide opportunities for our community to heal and grow.

The grant process, originally open in the Spring of 2020, was suspended while CFAAC pivoted to address community crisis funding in response to the pandemic. Knowing that our community needs healing more than ever now, CFAAC decided to reopen the grant application from October 1 through November 15, with awards announced at the end of 2020. The Fund will award three to five one-time grants between $10,000 and $30,000.

The Fund for Community Healing will focus its grantmaking in the following priority giving areas that pertain to community healing and crisis prevention:

• Trauma counseling programs

• Crisis response programs

• Crisis prevention and intervention programs

• Mental and behavioral health programs

• Creating and/or maintaining a physical memorial to the victims of the Capital Gazette tragedy.

Fund for Community Healing - Learn More & Apply

CFAAC Community Impact Series Presents: Fostering An Inclusive Environment

Topic: Belo Consulting Group Presents: Fostering An Inclusive Environment on Teams
Date: December 3, 2020 at 9 a.m.
Cost: $25 per person

Exceptional nonprofit boards and staff understand and realize the correlation between mission, strategy, board composition, and effectiveness, and further understand that an inclusive culture is essential to accomplishing that end. In order for the nonprofit sector to remain relevant, effective, and grounded in the needs of our increasingly diverse communities, nonprofit boards and their staff must become and remain inclusive. 

This workshop explores the idea of intentionally developing and fostering a culture of inclusion in any environment, especially for teams. This discussion looks at the importance of seeking diverse perspectives in order to increase innovation and productivity as well as the behaviors and awareness necessary to develop an inclusive culture.

Attendees will:

• Be presented with the case for developing a culture of inclusion for their teams 

• Explore the importance of behaviors and awareness necessary to develop an inclusive culture through interactive scenarios

• Observe the importance of seeking diverse perspectives in order to expand the realm of possible beneficial outcomes

NOTE:  This session is limited to nonprofit staff; a maximum of two people from any one nonprofit can register. Session limited to 30 people.

Register for Fostering An Inclusive Environment

Community Grants

Anne Arundel Women Giving Together (AAWGT) Call for 2021 Grant Applications

This Call for Applications launches AAWGT’s 15th year of grantmaking. This year, in addition to seeking proposals for our traditional grants, AAWGT is also exploring how our grantmaking might begin to address racial inequities. Therefore, this year our Call includes a new $20,000 Racial Equity Grant that invites all interested nonprofits to consider the impact of these inequities on their communities and their organizations and to propose strategies that address some of the underlying core issues.

A Zoom Grant Applicant Workshop will be held Tuesday, November 17, 2020. Learn more here.

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NEWS FOR PROFESSIONAL ADVISORS

The Power of Planning: Bundling, Bunching, and Bequests

The significant community needs arising from the events of 2020, coupled with recent tax law changes, make it very important that you help your clients plan their charitable giving strategies.

For the last couple of years, your clients likely have been hearing about a tax-efficient charitable giving strategy called “bundling” or “bunching.” The popularity of this tool increased significantly under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act provisions that reduced the incentive for taxpayers to itemize deductions on their income tax returns, starting with tax year 2018, because of the now doubled standard deduction. In other words, your clients now have to give a lot more to charity to reap the tax benefits. Read more…

The CARES Act and Community: Three 2020 Upsides

Silver linings are hard to find this year, but it’s worth remembering that The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act created important opportunities for your clients to increase their giving to charitable causes. Keep these three tools in mind as you are assisting clients with year-end tax planning, read more…