Community Foundation of the Lowcountry

Jasper Community Fund

The recent and continuing development of the Jasper County area is quite phenomenal.  We have all experienced the impact of this in the form of changing demographics with changing needs.  While bringing new and valuable resources, both human and economic, this also places a strain on the small but critical nonprofit sector in the area.  These nonprofit organizations, serving the arts, education, health, historic preservation, human services, community development and the environment, bridge many gaps and provide safety nets, which ultimately improve the quality of life for all of us. 
 
In this important work of community-building, among the most critical needs are these:

• A permanent and growing source of dollars, unrestricted as to purpose, which can be mobilized over time as community needs become known.
• A group of local decision-makers who understand the complex needs of Jasper County and will steer the movement of resources to the places of greatest need.

Fortunately, the Jasper Community Fund can provide the mechanism for the fulfillment of these two critical needs.  Gifts to this effort will provide both available dollars for use in the short term, and permanent dollars invested to provide an important source of long-term funding.  In addition, the community leaders involved in the Advisory Council will be comprised of people with the skills and commitment to be strategic and sensible with these funds, and respond carefully to the ever-shifting needs within the Jasper County community area with comprehensive awareness, expertise and compassion.  
 
What is the Jasper Community Fund?
It is a charitable fund created to support current and future community needs and opportunities in the Jasper County area.

What is the mission of the Jasper Community Fund?
The Fund’s mission is to develop and sustain a collaborative effort among area residents to support current and future community needs and opportunities and to provide grants to assist qualified nonprofit agencies or organizations working to serve local needs.
 
How and when did this initiative get started?
In late 2007, a small group of caring, forward-thinking community members recognized the need to create a philanthropic effort that would, over time, provide resources to strengthen the Jasper County community for today and generations to come.   They began this effort through the development of the Jasper Community Fund and generously contributed the initial gifts to seed the Fund.
 
To encourage the growth and sustainability of the Fund, the Board of Trustees of the Community Foundation of the Lowcountry recently voted to award a matching grant to the Jasper Community Fund in the amount of $30,000.  When matched successfully, it will provide an additional $60,000 to the fund.
 
How will the Fund operate?
The Jasper Community Fund has been established as a fund of the Community Foundation of the Lowcountry, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.  The fund has been established as a permanent endowment fund to serve the community in perpetuity.
 
An Advisory Council comprised of Jasper County residents will be established to provide guidance to the endowment fund.  

Who will serve on the Jasper Community Fund Advisory Council?
The Advisory Council will be constituted of a group of approximately 13 volunteer members from Jasper County who share in the care and concern for Jasper’s history, people, and it’s present and future needs.  The Advisory Council will also include at least one representative from the Community Foundation, appointed by its Board of Trustees.  It is intended that this representative be a resident of Jasper County. 

How will grants from the Fund be used?
Future grants from the Jasper Community Fund will be awarded to address a broad range of critical community needs and opportunities in the Jasper County area, ranging from arts and culture, environmental support, educational programs and initiatives, health and human services projects, historic preservation, and community development and improvement projects.  Nonprofit organizations doing work in these areas will be able to apply for grants.

NEWS AND UPDATES
The Jasper Community Foundation was recently awarded a matching grant from the Community Foundation of the Lowcountry.  Read more here.

To contribute to the Jasper Community Fund, please visit our online giving page and select the Jasper Community Fund from the drop-down menu of options.