|
|
|
|
Philanthropy Northwest’s National Rural Funders Gathering Draws Praise
By Caitlin Copple Masingill, Guest Contributor
In late October, Philanthropy Northwest hosted its National Rural Funders Gathering at Mountain Sky Guest Ranch in Emigrant, Montana. About 64 percent of participants hailed from Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Washington, Wyoming and Oregon, including eight Philanthropy Northwest members. Other attendees traveled from across the country, even as far away as Arkansas, Minnesota and Vermont. The attendees included traditional funders, representatives from government, tribal nations, as well as CDFIs and other philanthropic practitioners.
The conversation ranged from how to invest and advocate in diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) to current financial and economic realities. These challenging issues, including job losses and state and federal budget cuts, disproportionately impact rural communities in the Northwest. Read more
|
|
|
The Headwaters Foundation in Missoula, Montana, announced two new board members, as well as a new community partnerships director, Erin Switalski. The trustees are Penny Kipp, director of student services TRiO at Salish Kootenai College, and Richard Opper a former director of the Montana Department of Health and Human Services. Switalski is the former Executive Director at Women’s Voices for the Earth, a national environmental justice nonprofit.
|
|
|
|
The Charlotte Martin Foundation announced that Marissa Spang joined as a new board member, replacing Sheila Kelly. Spang is a tribal member of the Crow and Northern Cheyenne nations and is an instructor at Montana State University’s Native American Studies program in Bozeman. Spang has also worked as an independent consultant to organizations on culturally-responsive and community-based planning, evaluation and research, including natural resource/environmental and educational consulting. She is a co-founder of Indigenous Scholars of Promise, the college prep program administered by Hopa Mountain.
|
|
|
Jayne Morrow of Chinook and Kali Wicks, a newly-elected Helena City Commissioner, have joined the advisory board of the Women’s Foundation of Montana, a fund of the Montana Community Foundation. Wicks will serve as vice-chair, with Hillary Folkvord of Three Forks serving as chair for 2019.
|
|
|
|
The Wyss Foundation recently announced a $1 billion campaign to protect 30 percent of the planet by 2030. Wilson, Wyoming-based billionaire Hansjörg Wyss is an 83-year-old entrepreneur who made his fortune in the Belgian steel industry before establishing the U.S. division of Synthes, a medical device manufacturing company that has since been acquired. Partners in the campaign will include The National Geographic Society, The Nature Conservancy and local organizations.
|
|
|
Christensen Family Foundation has joined Philanthropy Northwest as its newest Idaho member. The foundation hosts the Sun Valley Forum in Idaho each July.
|
|
Regional News
Washington Foundation announces $2.5 M for Scholarships
The Dennis & Phyllis Washington Foundation recently announced a commitment of $2.5 million to the Horatio Alger Association to support Career and Technical Education Scholarships for youth.
The pledge will support 200 youth annually with scholarships, and a minimum of 50 of those scholarships will be reserved for Montanans. Horatio Alger Career & Technical Education Scholarships assist low-income students who have faced and overcome great obstacles and wish to pursue a career or technical education.
New Name, Look and Grantmaking Areas for Montana Arm of Blank Foundation
Courtesy of Tawnya Rupe Mraz
For the past 17 years, The Arthur M. Blank Foundation and Mountain Sky Guest Ranch Fund have invested more than $4.6 million in nonprofit organizations serving Montana Communities. Last month, the foundation announced a new name and logo for its Montana philanthropy, AMB West Philanthropies. The name encompasses the programmatic work achieved at or through the following entities: West Creek Ranch, AMB West Community Fund, AMB West Conservation, AMB West Base Camp and AMB West Challenge Course.
 The AMB West Community Fund (formerly known as Mountain Sky Guest Ranch Fund), directed by a group of associates at Mountain Sky Guest Ranch and West Creek Ranch who volunteer to meet with every grantee, conduct site visits, and ultimately determine where dollars will have the most impact, has identified four areas of focus for 2019: early childhood development, youth empowerment and development, community wellness and youth suicide prevention.
The focus on community wellness and youth suicide prevention is new this year, and according to Tawnya Rupe Mraz, AMB West Philanthropies program director, proposals that integrate wellness programs in a variety of settings, including but not limited to mental health services, juvenile justice services, schools and family counseling, will be considered. The grantmaking area to prevent youth suicide will be specific to efforts in Park County, Montana, in response to Montana having the highest suicide rate in the U.S. and Park County having the fourth highest rate in the state.
Idaho Celebrates Philanthropy Day
Idaho Nonprofit Center was among those organizations celebrating the state’s second annual Philanthropy Day on November 6, with award ceremonies recognizing the amazing philanthropic work of nonprofit organizations, foundations and businesses nominated by their peers. “The Idaho Philanthropy Day awards encompass the spirit of philanthropy including, time, talent, treasure and involvement in the community,” said Keri Davidson, development director of Idaho Nonprofit Center.
Honorees were nominated by their peers and award categories included: Outstanding Philanthropic Company/Foundation; Outstanding Nonprofit; Outstanding Philanthropist (Adult and Youth); and Outstanding Media Outlet.
The Idaho Philanthropy Day awards are presented in partnership with Idaho Association of Fundraising Professionals, Idaho Community Foundation, Idaho Women’s Charitable Foundation, Innovia Foundation and Idaho Nonprofit Center. The celebrations were presented by Wells Fargo and took place throughout the state including Boise, Coeur d’Alene and Pocatello.
|
|
|
|
Giraffe Laugh received the Outstanding Nonprofit Award at the Philanthropy Day event in Boise on November 6. Pictured: Amy Little, President, Idaho Nonprofit Center, Lori Fascilla, Director, Giraffe Laugh (Outstanding Nonprofit) and Jane Pavek, Vice President, Community Development, Wells Fargo.
|
|
Montana Healthcare Foundation Grant Helps Addicted Mothers in Butte
Courtesy of the Montana Standard
A $150,000 grant from the Montana Healthcare Foundation to St. James will allow the hospital to collaborate locally to provide addiction treatment services for pregnant mothers before, during and after their due dates.The grant will also ensure the hospital’s prenatal providers are trained in recognizing addiction, and add a behavioral counselor to the provider team to work specifically with struggling mothers.
Idaho Community Foundation Celebrates 30 Years
Courtesy of Jennifer Kronberg
At a recent anniversary bash, the Idaho Community Foundation commemorated 30 years and $120 million in grants and scholarships awarded with a new logo, revamped website and an additional $26,000 raised to increase future grantmaking. 
ICF is the second largest granting foundation in Idaho and distributed nearly $9 million in grants and nearly $500,000 in scholarships in 2017. By the end of this year, the community foundation will have distributed more than $120 million in grants and scholarships in its 30-year history, thanks to the power of collective giving.
“We reached this point with help from thousands of generous Idahoans who pooled their gifts at the Idaho Community Foundation,” said Karen Bilowith, ICF president and CEO. “And because many of these gifts are endowed, their generosity will continue forever and will benefit Idaho’s future generations.”
Washington Foundation Supports 75 Montana Foodbanks
Working with the Missoula-based Montana Food Bank Network, the Dennis & Phyllis Washington Foundation recently selected 75 food banks, food pantries, rescue missions and homeless shelters across Montana to receive $209,000 in additional grant funds to aid them in helping Montana’s most vulnerable citizens. The foundation’s special Holiday Giving Program is designed to give an extra boost to basic needs organizations around the holiday season.
“Basic needs organizations go above and beyond to ensure that the needs of our fellow Montanans are met – a goal that becomes more and more challenging each year,” said the Foundation’s Executive Director, Mike Halligan. “This special holiday program is designed so that struggling families and high-risk groups can enjoy the holidays, knowing where their next meal is coming from.”
Wyoming Community Foundation distributes $542,000 across the state
Courtesy of The Sheridan Press
This fall, the Wyoming Community Foundation granted $542,000 to nonprofits across Wyoming. With a goal of building a better Wyoming, the funds will go to 62 charitable organizations statewide, $107,600 of which support organizations in Sheridan and Johnson counties.
“We’re here to help strengthen our community,” Sheridan-Johnson local board Chair Wendy Martin said. “With support from generous donors, we’re able to give to outstanding, innovative nonprofit programs that are truly making a difference.”
Women’s Foundation Releases Report on MT Women in the Workplace
The first of three reports from the Women’s Foundation of Montana on the experiences of women in the workforce was released in October, in partnership with the University of Montana. It focuses on county employees in the state and found that, while most are generally happy with their jobs and feel they can access flexibility and overall support at work, Montana’s women are more likely to report having experienced or witnessed discrimination.
The report also found that more men than women are employed overall, with significantly more men in higher paid and more powerful positions. For example, in Montana, the powerful elected position of County Commissioner is filled by only 16% women.
|
|
Worth Reading
Chobani Foundation to Invest $100K in Idaho
Courtesy of Nonprofit Quarterly
The Chobani Foundation announced in late September that it is launching a $100,000 annual fund to support entrepreneurship and economic opportunity in Idaho’s Magic Valley. Chobani has been expanding its south-central Idaho plant since its original move to the area in 2012. The announcement mirrors a similar fund that supports Chobani’s other significant home in Central New York and an overall integrated and place-based corporate social responsibility (CSR) strategy.
MT’s Donor Advised Funds Aid Nonprofits
By Mary Rutherford, Montana Community Foundation CEO & President
Donor-advised funds, also called DAFs, are a philanthropic tool used by many different entities, and in organizations like ours, they play a unique role in the community. For example, the Disadvantaged Children’s Fund, established at Montana Community Foundation by Richard (Dick) and Cheri Cox of Billings, has been critical to supporting children’s causes in the Billings area and across the state. Why did they choose a donor-advised fund at a community foundation like MCF?
Philanthropy Northwest Annual Conference Attendee Reflects on Visit to Minidoka Internment Camp Site
By Lauren Mariko Waudé, Guest Contributor
As most folks packed up their belongings and headed home after the Philanthropy Northwest annual conference, I boarded a bus with several other PNW members and staff and headed to Jerome, Idaho to visit the Minidoka National Historic Site and view what’s left of the former incarceration camp that held my family, along with 13,000 other people of Japanese ancestry during World War II.
Foundations Forge Ahead: DEI and Investing
By Rosalie Sheehy Cates
Can the money at the heart of the foundation business model be responsive to a foundation’s important values of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI)? The answer to this question is yes. You can read all about it our new report Forging Ahead: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in Foundation Investing Activities. We interviewed executives at eight large foundations that have embraced organization-wide DEI efforts. We asked them how DEI can shape the structure of the investing department, the work of investment committees and investment choices. Here’s what we learned.
|
|
|
Visit Our Job Bank
 Interested in exploring new opportunities or posting a job? Know any strong candidates seeking a career change? Curious about who's hiring? Take a look at the numerous positions listed in our Job Bank.
|
|
Events and Engagement Opportunities
January 16 & January 23, 2019
Funders Census Initiative Briefing Series: Census 2020 Messaging Testing Results
Online
In partnership with the Democracy Funders Collaborative Census Subgroup, this series keeps members updated on the importance of making sure all are counted in the upcoming Census.
March 11-13, 2019
Foundations on the Hill
Washington, D.C.
This two-day convening brings together hundreds of foundation leaders from across the country to meet with Congress and discuss issues of importance to philanthropy. Philanthropy Northwest leads a six-state delegation each year.
This comprehensive, two-day educational program was developed by experts in the philanthropic sector, and facilitated by seasoned practitioners. Philanthropy Institute: Practical Skills & Strategies for Emerging Practitioners (formerly known as Best Practices): is the field’s standardized orientation for individual members who have recently joined the philanthropic sector.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
