About
This incredible county we call home benefits from your contributions as they are directed to assist many of the humanitarian, educational and cultural organizations in the area. All this is made possible through the annual earnings of investments managed through the Foundation.
As our county grows, so does its needs. It is for this reason that we want to assist you in helping meet those needs. When generous people like you choose respectable and appropriate ways to give back to your community, the Community Foundation is always available to facilitate your wishes.
Current News
Larry “The Can Man” Van Ness Memorial Fund established at Madison County Community Foundation
Mission/Priorities
Our goal at Madison County Community Foundation is one we share with the entire community: improving the quality of life in Madison County. Specifically, our mission states that the Foundation exists "to enhance the quality of life of the citizens of Madison County by attracting charitable gifts, making philanthropic grants, providing financial stewardship and community leadership."
The Board of Directors of the Madison County Community Foundation have established the Foundation's priorities as lead by the mission:
- Attracting charitable gifts: chiefly in the form of endowments
- Making philanthropic grants: in the areas of arts and culture, education, health and human services, economic development, and civic affairs
- Providing responsible financial stewardship: as evidenced by adherence to the national standards established by the Council on Foundations
- Providing community leadership: serving as convener and catalyst; identifying needs and opportunities and shaping effective responses to them
What We Do
The Madison County Community Foundation addresses the broad needs in our county which include, but are not limited to, the following five categories:
- Arts and culture to include the support of programs and facilities which are designed to establish a diversified county cultural program that offers widespread opportunities for participation and appreciation; and
- Education to include support for programs in preschool, elementary, secondary, and post-secondary education, scholarships, and special education programs;
- Health to include the support of hospitals, rehabilitation centers, not-for-profit health and medical related programs including safety and wellness and recreational programs;
- Human Services to include the support of human service organizations, programs for children and youth, and services to the aged;
- Civic Affairs to include the support of programs and facilities related to criminal justice, community development, employment, citizens’ involvement, leadership training, and other community activities
Our goal at Madison County Community Foundation is to assist area residents in making philanthropic giving as effective as possible. In our first annual report, Robert Nicholson, President of the Board of Directors, wrote, "Our mode of operation is important to understand. We do not typically do fund-raising; rather we seek to assist donors in their charitable intent. Our question always is, "How may we help you in what you want to do?"
Each of our supporters, donors, grant recipients, scholarship winners, Board members, and community volunteers has an individual response to this question. It is our duty to assist these people with their charitable intent as it serves the Foundation's mission to improve the quality of life of the citizens of Madison County.
Donors can feel assured that our compliance with national standards for Foundations will ensure their gifts are put to the best use. Organizations which receive Foundation funding can feel gratified that the work they are doing has been carefully screened and accounted for.
We welcome your questions and interest in the work of the Madison County Community Foundation. We would love to have a conversation about how we might help you in what you want to do, today and far into the future.
Foundation History
In 1990, Lilly Endowment announced a major philanthropic program for Indiana- the G.I.F.T. Initiative- Giving Indiana Funds for Tomorrow. The initiative was launched to assist Hoosier communities in establishing and strengthening community foundations.
The Madison County Community Foundation was incorporated and designated a nonprofit public charity in 1992 as a direct result of the Lilly Endowment program. Upon its formation, the Lilly Endowment offered the Madison County Community Foundation a $500,000 challenge grant- whereby Lilly Endowment would match every $2 raised in endowed funds with $1.
Lilly's G.I.F.T. Initiative has brought philanthropy in Indiana to a new level; offering communities throughout the state the incentive to develop a mechanism by which local citizens can pool funds in perpetuity for the betterment of their own communities.
Beginning with this initial challenge gift, Madison County Community Foundation today is a stable, trustworthy and permanent partner in efforts to sustain and improve our community. With assets at $30 million and growing, the Foundation annually returns hundreds of thousands of dollars to Madison County in the form of grants and scholarships. Our mission remains constant: to enhance the quality of life of the citizens of Madison County by attracting charitable gifts, making philanthropic grants, providing responsible financial stewardship and community leadership.