SACF reaches $10 million milestone

The Shawano Area Community Foundation has reached a big milestone this summer with $10 million in community funds under its purview.

It is quite the feather in the cap of a foundation based in a smaller city that has just over 30 years of history to it, but the milestone didn’t come from any huge estate donations, according to Jon Meyers, SACF president. It was the result of steady, consistent faith from Shawano and surrounding communities.

“Throughout the years, the community foundation has been a presence in Shawano for many years, long before I was a part of it,” Meyers said. “The $10 million has done a couple of decades to do, and it’s amazing when you think about the size of Shawano and what it takes to reach those types of numbers.”

While there are some big donors in the mix, Meyers noted that most of the portfolio comes from smaller donors.

“A couple thousand dollars, $10,000 and up, and then we have folks who have put significant amounts of money to their favorite charities, whether its the arts, scholarships, all kinds of things,” Meyers said. “For the most part, it is smaller funds.”

A lot of giving is key to the success of a foundation like Shawano’s. More than 80 charitable funds within SACF provided more than $243,000 in grants to a variety of organizations in 2020. For example, SACF funds helps the Boys and Girls Club of Shawano to continue serving children and families during COVID-19.

Other organizations that received grants include Bridge the Gap, Feeding America, First Presbyterian Church, Girl Scouts, Junior Achievement, Lutheran Counseling and Family Services, Mission of Hope House of Wisconsin, Northeast Wisconsin Technical College Educational Foundation, Ronald McDonald House Charities, Safe Haven, Shawano Area Matthew 25, Shawano County Historical Society, Shawano County Literacy Council, The FRESH Project, Tigerton School District and Wescott Emergency Management Services.

That’s just from the Shawano Area Fund. There are many other funds helping schools, churches, libraries, clubs and other entities to help people in need, recognize people for outstanding achievement and keep arts and culture alive.

“It is a lot of people coming together for a lot of different causes,” Meyers said. “No nonprofit organization in need is really left out. For example, we do a lot of work with SAM25. Some are in the arts. Some are scholarships and youth programs. There’s a plethora of different organizations that benefit because of the foundation, and people are able to put money under the umbrella of the foundation and avoid all the costly tax implications they deal with and the legal fees and things to set up these charitable trusts if they had to do it on their own.”

SACF, which first formed in 1990, is able to cut through all the red tape and make sure money goes where it belongs, according to Meyers, which saves time for those who would like to give but might not have the expertise to know what needs to be done to set up a fund or trust.

“It really works out for people because they can maximize their giving and not have to worry about the headaches of the legal part of it,” Meyers said.

He said he doesn’t know if the $10 million milestone will allow SACF to reach a broader audience, but he believes it will be a good thing for the nonprofits already receiving funding.

“The more that’s in the pot, the more that goes out,” Meyers said. “It certainly will mean a beneficial year for those in need across the spectrum that are looking. Hopefully, that means everyone can be helped.”

Besides the direct funds to various nonprofits, SACF helps community organizations through its Celebration of Giving, where it recognizes a number of community volunteers each year for how they give their time. This year, SACF will be recognizing its award winners Aug. 19 during the Thursdayz at Franklin event.

lpulaski@newmedia-wi.com