Building a Solid Foundation
by Stacey Paretti Rase
It’s not everyday that you’re just given $1 million. But that’s exactly what the northshore received earlier this year when the Baton Rouge Area Foundation committed Katrina relief funds to be granted over a 12 to14-month period by the newly formed Northshore Community Foundation. Chances are you’ve heard of the new community foundation by now. But, since our area has never seen the likes of an organization of its kind, you may not truly understand what its purpose is and what this news ultimately means for our community.
A Foundation’s Function
A community foundation’s role as a non-profit public charity is to serve specific populations and geographic locations through grant making and other initiatives. A community foundation accumulates and responsibly administers permanent capital in order to play a significant role in the funding of social, recreational, cultural and educational endeavors. The Northshore Community Foundation serves four parishes—St. Tammany, Tangipahoa, Washington and St. Helena. The two key jobs of the foundation are to direct donor funds toward grants that benefit the community and take on substantial projects that will transform and enhance our quality of life. “In short, it is a vehicle to create opportunities for citizens to get involved in their community in a positive, primarily philanthropic manner,” explains the foundation’s first president, Susan Bonnett.
So, what is the Baton Rouge Area Foundation and why would it give $1 million to its northshore counterpart as seed money? Founded in 1964 by eleven civic leaders, the community foundation is probably best known recently for its involvement in the revitalization of our capital city’s downtown area. To get an idea of just how influential the Baton Rouge Area Foundation has been, consider this: In 16 years, its assets grew from $5 million to over $500 million. The group has invested over $1.4 billion in capital into the city over the past eight years and given more than $180 million in grants in its four-plus decades. The foundation is half owner of the brilliant $55 million Shaw Center for the Arts that re-energized the city’s cultural community, and owns the Hilton Baton Rouge Capitol Center (the historic Heidelberg Hotel that was fully restored to its former state of grandeur to the tune of over $70 million). These are just two shining examples of how the foundation has taken charge by identifying that city’s philanthropic leadership and directing funds toward projects that help the community thrive and sustain itself.
Hoping to duplicate that type of success on the northshore was a logical next step, says Bonnett, noting that urban planners from all across the country have identified the northshore as the fastest growing region in the state. “In the next 10 to 20 years, this area is predicted to be the economic engine for our state. We need to keep the community organized and moving forward to ensure that we are prepared.”
Simply put, the Baton Rouge Area Foundation feels it is investing in Louisiana’s future. In support, the foundation directed the above-mentioned $1 million for Katrina-related initiatives, which will be awarded over the course of five grant cycles, with $200,000 given during each cycle. The first cycle is set to end March 2. The Baton Rouge Area Foundation also directed nearly $500,000 toward the Northshore Community Foundation’s 2007 operating budget, and $500,000 has been earmarked for future planning purposes. It also provides shared services to help lower the local foundation’s operating costs. “They have a staff of 26, including public relations directors, attorneys and grant researchers,” says Bonnett. “They are sharing all of these resources with us.” But she stresses that when the Baton Rouge Area Foundation severs its financial commitment, the local foundation aims to be poised “to stand on our own two feet and fund ourselves.”
Building Financial Footing
Community foundations grow and are able to make grants as donors create dedicated fund accounts to benefit their communities. In the most popular version of the fund—the Donor-Advised Fund—philanthropists donate money to the foundation, which then invests the funds and manages the required government paperwork. The donor uses the earnings and money in the fund to recommend grants benefiting the community. (Other types of funds may include a Corporate-Advised Fund, Agency Endowment, Unrestricted, Designated Agency, Field of Interest and Scholarship.) Foundations assist donors in their charitable giving with their in-depth community knowledge. The Northshore Community Foundation can identify opportunities to strengthen the northshore community and provide administrative support, including quarterly statements and IRS documentation.
The foundation will also raise money through membership. Fund donors must donate a minimum of $10,000, but a membership to the foundation allows citizens to donate a more modest amount of money, while still making a difference. “Membership levels range from $100 to $10,000. Every one of these dollars will help build an asset pool to pump back into our community. And the more your assets grow, the more of a catalyst your foundation becomes,” Bonnett says.
The advantages of donating money to a community foundation are immense. Community foundations are designed to act on behalf of and in the best interest of the areas they serve. They specialize in knowledge—often establishing ongoing relationships with both service and government agencies to find opportunities for growth. With oversight from the board, assets are pooled and collectively managed, resulting in increased leverage for the organization. Bonnett offers, “From education to health care to affordable housing, community foundations can affect tremendous change in an area and improve the quality of life for generations.”
Leading the Way
Deciding where to award community grants and direct donor funds is not a task taken lightly. The Northshore Community Foundation is governed by its own self-selected board of directors, who were chosen specifically for their vision for and commitment to the future of the northshore. “I believe our board has very diverse perspectives, which is important,” says Bonnett. She also made it clear that when she approached each candidate, she stressed that there were three definite requirements. “Each must have a bold vision—see things that not many others around them can. Each also must have the courage to sell that vision and be active in asking others in the community for their support. And lastly, they must not be afraid to stand up to anyone for what they believe is right. We will surely take arrows at some point for our ideas. From my experience, some people can have very narrow vision. But you must understand that a community foundation is legacy building. What we set out to do is not necessarily to benefit our generation, but to benefit our community for years to come.”
Maura Donahue, former chairwoman of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and vice president of DonahueFavret Contractors, is the Northshore Community Foundation’s first chair. Other board members include Mike Burris, Michael B. Burris CPA; Tim Carpenter, director of Fannie Mae Louisiana; Scott Chotin, retired; R. Reid Falconer, architect/developer; Dick Knight, chairman of Resource Bank; Jimmy Maurin, chairman of Stirling Properties; Willie Paretti, president of Rare Find Design Center; Todd Richard, president and CEO of FARA Insurance Services; Carl Schneider, vice chairman of First Community Bank and Will Trist, resident director of Merrill Lynch. Bonnett notes that the foundation will be seating two to three additional board members to provide a wider representation of the region.
Before joining the Northshore Community Foundation as president, Bonnett operated her own government and public affairs firm. She has worked as director of administrative affairs for Governor Mike Foster and ran his successful re-election campaign. Bonnett also worked as development director for the Louisiana Council on Child Abuse. The importance of this new position is not lost on Bonnett. “I have the greatest job in Louisiana! I get to make a difference in the community where I raise my family and help donors impact their environment.”
Where to Begin?
Since identifying its leadership, the Northshore Community Foundation has been quite active in the community by giving presentations to the public to communicate its vision. The board members have also begun work planning events to garner interest in the endeavor and seek financial support. But one of the most important steps in the process, says Bonnett, is identifying the proper routes to develop an organized plan. As it moves forward in allocating funds, the foundation must first assess the needs and desires of the people.
To that end, the foundation will look, in part, toward the results of the Louisiana Speaks initiative—a multifaceted planning process that combines the efforts of local, state and federal partners to develop a sustainable, long-term vision for South Louisiana. The project links local plans together by addressing issues that cross parish lines, such as levees, wetlands, highways, waterways, economies and jobs.
The first part of the Louisiana Speaks process began about 18 months ago and involved months of researching, acquiring data, analyzing long-range trends, examining existing plans and meeting with area planning agencies and civic leaders to build an extensive database of existing conditions. Next, nationally renowned planners Calthorpe and Associates conducted stakeholder workshops late last summer with South Louisiana citizens, local and national consultants and state agencies such as the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority to create several scenarios for our region’s future. “They held town meetings all the way from Slidell to Lake Charles,” explains Bonnett. “It was a six-hour process in which citizens sat at tables of eight to ten to discuss four major areas: coastal restoration, economic development, infrastructure and growth.” The experts studied and mapped possible “virtual futures” for South Louisiana, which were introduced to the public this past January in the form of a poll. Citizens were invited to weigh in on various scenarios for our region’s future. A final regional vision and action plan will be announced in late March.
“[The Northshore Community Foundation] is waiting for these results to decide how to spend our planning dollars,” says Bonnett. “The decisions from this process will become very important because it will be a synthesized plan of the people.”
The Northshore Community Foundation is located at 635 Lafitte St., Unit A in Mandeville. For more information, call 624-7160 or log on to www.northshorefoundation.org.
