Giving to nonprofits and residents in need through the Community Foundation Serving Southwest Colorado increased 20 percent in 2018, and that’s not even counting the $700,000 donated to help those affected by the 416 Fire.
Giving through the foundation totaled $3.17 million last year, which came from private residents, companies and private foundations. It also includes funds the foundation manages for other nonprofits.
Anecdotally, giving to individual nonprofits was down in 2018, but donors to the foundation stepped up their giving, likely because they identified a need, said Briggen Wrinkle, executive director of the Community Foundation.
“It was a year of turmoil,” she said. “People had things on their plate that they never dreamed of having, like being evacuated.”
More than $700,000 was given to the Community Emergency Relief Fund to help those hurt financially by the 416 Fire. It exceeded the immediate needs in the community by more than $100,000, so those funds have been set aside for future emergencies and other projects related to fire recovery, she said.
The foundation has invested $43,000 for future emergencies and set aside $75,000 for environmental mitigation in and around the 416 Fire burn scar.
The foundation has granted $25,000 for environmental mitigation to three organizations.
The San Juan Development Association received $5,000 to help promote some of Silverton’s winter activities, including the skijoring race and fat bike race, she said.
Mountain Studies Institute received $10,000 to help fund work aimed at tracking how tributaries flowing into the Animas River are affected by the burn scar.
The foundation also paid Southwest Conservation Corps $10,000 to help La Plata County government clean up after future flooding near the burn scar.
While the foundation raises and manages some funds, most of the money it handles comes from independent funders who direct how the money is spent.
One of the major independent funds is the Ballantine Family Fund. The fund was established in 1957 by Morley C. Ballantine and Arthur A. Ballantine Jr. and focuses on causes that “benefit the human condition” in Southwest Colorado.
In 2018, the Ballantine Family Fund trustees awarded more than $300,000. The fund supported causes including animal protection, arts and culture, education, environment, youth, and human services, with $248,775 going to 125 nonprofits in Southwest Colorado. The average grant size was $1,990, according to a news release.
The trustees awarded an additional $55,000 in unsolicited grant money to KSUT, Bayfield Friends of the Library, Boys and Girls Club of La Plata County and the Be FRANK Foundation, a nonprofit that provides music education.
“Southwest Colorado is home to many nonprofits, which are making life more appealing, and the Ballantine Family Fund is pleased to be able to be supportive,” said Richard Ballantine, president of the fund and chairman of the board of Ballantine Communications Inc., the parent company of The Durango Herald.
mshinn@durangoherald.com
Donations
The Community Foundation Serving Southwest Colorado tracks donations it manages by the source of the funding. Last year, giving fit into five categories:
$1,743,451 in grants to nonprofits from independent funders.
$996,532 in grants to nonprofits for which the foundation is the fiscal sponsor.
$303,775 in grants from the Ballantine Family Fund.
$64,880 in grants funded by the Community Foundation.
$61,000 in scholarships for educational opportunities.
