by Community Foundation of Fayette County | Dec 15, 2021 | CFFC News, Fayette Gives, Grants
CFFC’s Fayette Gives Proves to be a Successful “Day of Giving” for Local Charities
The second annual Fayette Gives, held on November 16, raised $441,880 for Fayette County charities. Donations from the public totaled over $366,000 and the $70,600 bonus pool, supported by sponsors, provided additional funding to the 64 participating charities. The Community Foundation of Fayette County (CFFC) hosts Fayette Gives to engage the community in philanthropy and build a stronger Fayette County.
To recognize and celebrate the success of these charities, CFFC hosted a Fayette Gives Grants Presentation on December 14, 2021 at Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus for the participating charities. As Community Sponsors, Jennifer Jubin from COE and Luke Kim from Mike Kelly Toyota presented the checks.
Fayette Gives has proven to be a fundraising opportunity that the community embraces and that local charities value. The public’s donations increased by 66% percent compared to last year’s inaugural Fayette Gives, and the participating charities increased from 43 in 2020 to 64 in 2021.
“We started accepting check donations back in September, and by early November we knew we would surpass last year’s total,” said CFFC Executive Director Renee Couser. “It was exciting to see the numbers climb on November 16 during the 12-hour fundraising marathon. Thank you to everyone who joined us in building a stronger Fayette,” said Couser.
The Fayette Gives website (www.fayettegives.org) provides all the information needed for this special 12-hour “day of giving”. On Fayette Gives day, donors select one or more charities for their contribution and the payment is processed through the website. Live results display on the home page with leaderboards for the charities, based on dollars raised and the number of donations received. These leaderboards are still available on the website to display preliminary results (these numbers do not include bonus pool dollars or donations received after November 16).
A charity’s bonus pool dollars are determined by their amount raised and their number of unique donors, calculated through prorated percentages. This incentivizes donors to give because each donation received by the end of Fayette Gives day is enhanced by the bonus pool, which in turn provides extra support to the charities.
The 64 participating charities serve residents through the arts, basic human needs, education, healthcare, recreation, and a variety of other service areas. Aside from monetary contributions, Fayette Gives raises awareness of local charities and their work.
“There is so much ‘good’ being done throughout Fayette County. CFFC has the privilege of working with local organizations who make a real impact for our friends and neighbors, and we hope that Fayette Gives helps others learn more about their wonderful services. Thank you to everyone who helped raise the impressive total of $441,880. All funds will stay right here in Fayette County,” said CFFC Board Chair J.D. Ewing.
View the final results spreadsheet with charity totals.
View more photos on CFFC’s Facebook @cffayettepa
Mark your calendars for next year’s Fayette Gives on Thursday, November 10, 2022 as we continue our efforts in building a stronger Fayette!
Herald-Standard article
Daily Courier article
Community Sponsors
The Swimmer Family
Generosity Sponsors
Fayette Pipe Company
JLE Industries, LLC
Charity Fund
Humanity Sponsors
Community Bank
Erie Insurance
First Federal Savings & Loan Association of Greene County
Ford of Uniontown
Nemacolin
Pittsburgh-Fayette Express, Inc.
the Uniontown Office of Janney Montgomery Scott
Wells Fargo Advisors ~ Vic Fiano, Jr. and Victor Fiano, III
by Community Foundation of Fayette County | Dec 7, 2021 | CFFC News
The Herald-Standard included the Community Foundation of Fayette County (CFFC) in their “Helping the Helpers” series. Read the full article here.
You can help CFFC by donating to the Building a Stronger Fayette Fund, which supports local nonprofits in a variety of service areas. Please make checks payable to CFFC with “Building a Stronger Fayette” on the memo line, or donate online through Network for Good or PayPal Giving Fund.
by Community Foundation of Fayette County | Sep 16, 2021 | CFFC News, News Releases
The Community Foundation of Fayette County (CFFC) recently received re-accreditation with the nation’s highest standard for philanthropic excellence. National Standards for U.S. Community Foundations® establish legal, ethical, effective practices for community foundations everywhere.
The National Standards for U.S. Community Foundations® program requires community foundations to document their policies for donor services, investments, grantmaking and administration. With over 500 community foundations already accredited nationwide, the program is designed to provide quality assurance to donors, as well as to their legal and financial advisors.
Since its founding in 1999, CFFC has been committed to serving Fayette County with the mission to “help define charitable needs, connect donors with causes that matter to them, support nonprofit organizations and invest charitable assets to make the community a better place to live.” CFFC first received accreditation in 2009 and has worked hard to receive re-accreditation to maintain recognition as an operationally and legally sound community foundation.
“CFFC’s re-accreditation distinguishes us as credible and trustworthy, which are valuable traits for our relationships with donors and professional advisors. These standards also hold us accountable for maintaining best practices, which will help us best serve the community for years to come,” said Renee Couser, CFFC Executive Director.
National Standards is not mandatory, but the foundation chooses to go above and beyond by affirming its commitment to excellence and accountability. Accreditation provides assurance that CFFC has sound policies and practices in place, and it means that CFFC meets the highest standards for local giving.
Please visit www.cffayettepa.org and follow CFFC on social media at @cffayettepa to learn more about CFFC.
by Community Foundation of Fayette County | Aug 11, 2021 | CFFC News, Grants, News Releases
The Community Foundation of Fayette County (CFFC) recently awarded seven charities a total of $41,400.
In 2020, the Strawberry Patch Fund was created through an estate gift. This Donor Designated Fund will support the following charities in perpetuity: Crime Victims’ Center of Fayette County; Domestic Violence Services of SWPA; Fayette Friends of Animals; Interfaith Volunteer Caregivers of Fayette, Inc.; Mount Macrina Manor; St. John the Evangelist Regional Catholic School; and Uniontown Public Library.
“Making a legacy gift to CFFC reflects a donor’s ongoing commitment to the charities and causes they care about the most. We are honored to carry out the wishes of donors in this way,” said Renee M. Couser, Executive Director of CFFC.
Left to right: Carol Ashton, Interfaith Volunteer Caregivers of Fayette, Inc.; Andrea Hibbs, Crime Victims’ Center of Fayette County; Lisa Hannum, Domestic Violence Services of SWPA; Christine Roskovensky, St. John the Evangelist Regional Catholic School; Lori Coffman, Fayette Friends of Animals; Linda Evans, Uniontown Public Library; not pictured Mount Macrina Manor.
Andrea Hibbs, Executive Director of Crime Victims’ Center of Fayette County, said, “We are overwhelmed by the generosity of this donor and grateful for this annual award. Crime Victims’ Center is using some of the funds to support our 24-hour crisis hotline service, and we also plan to provide additional outreach for our underserved/unserved areas of Fayette County with this funding.”
Lori Coffman, Board President of Fayette Friends of Animals, said, “Fayette Friends of Animals is eternally grateful for every donation we receive since our operational expenses are paid for in large part by donations from animal lovers within our community. Gifts like the annual grant from the Strawberry Patch Fund will be hugely beneficial with the upkeep of our aging building.”
Contact Renee Couser at 724-437-8600 x1 to learn more about how you can make a lasting impact through philanthropy.
by Community Foundation of Fayette County | Aug 3, 2021 | CFFC News
The Covid-19 Arts Working Group (CAWG), a collaboration of 15 foundations and a private donor in the Pittsburgh metro area, announced the Arts I Equity I Reimagined Fund, in response to the unprecedented and ongoing impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the region’s arts and cultural sector.
The Capacity Building Assistance program is designed to quickly respond to requests to gain the skills or concrete strategies needed to address COVID 19 related challenges. Open to nonprofit arts organizations or sponsored projects at $2.5 million or less in budget.
The Collective Action for Reimagining program seeks ideas that employ new, novel, and innovative ways of working together to address the dramatic shifts that have been instigated by the COVID 19 crisis, and that also address opportunities and solutions to reposition the sector for a more sustainable and equitable future. Open to any size nonprofit arts organization or project.
Details about the Arts I Equity I Reimagined Fund can be found at www.artsreimagined.org.