Elk County Community Foundation receives $4,000 EITC donation from Farmer’s National Bank

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PHOTO: Left to Right Amanda Lang, Farmers National Bank Branch Manager, ECCF Board Officers Tom Wagner, Jeff Marzella and Bob Ordiway.

ECCF RECEIVES EITC DONATION FROM FARMERS NATIONAL BANK

The Elk County Community Foundation was the grateful recipient of a $4,000 EITC donation from Farmers National Bank in support of grants that will be distributed to the Johnsonburg and Ridgway School districts.

Pennsylvania’s Educational Improvement Tax Credit (EITC) program is a way for businesses to enrich educational opportunities for students and earn tax credits by donating to an Educational Improvement Organization.

The Elk County Community Foundation (ECCF) is designated as an Educational Improvement Organization under the EITC program. The EITC program makes grants available to public schools to support innovative educational programs that do not fall within the typical academic program. ECCF is an approved administrator of these grants.

Any entity authorized to conduct business in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and subject to certain taxes is eligible to apply to be involved with the EITC program. More information about applying can be found at https://dced.pa.gov/programs/educational-improvement-tax-credit-program-eitc.   

As an approved EITC partner, the Community Foundation receives donations from qualified businesses to provide innovative educational programming within the public schools K-12.  For more information about the Community Foundation or EITC opportunities contact the Foundation at 814-834-2125 or visit their website at www.elkcountyfoundation.org .

Judith Manno Stager Right to Life Fund sponsors essay contest

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PHOTO: Student essay winners of the Judith Manno Stager Right to Life essay contest are pictured after each was presented with a $100 gift to be used toward their education. Front: Judith Manno Stager, contest sponsor, Grace Neubert, Grace Ames, Hailey Flemming, Grace Messineo, ECCHS teacher. Back Row: Paula Fritz Eddy of the Elk County Community Foundation, Joseph Toncich, Robert Urmann, William MacDonald.

Judith Manno Stager Right to Life Fund sponsors essay contest at ECCHS

The Elk County Community Foundation (ECCF) is the administrator of the Judy Manno Stager Right to Life Fund. This fund is a designated fund that supports entities that provide education, programs, or other awareness activities, of Right to Human Life in the Elk County Area. Donors that wish to direct their gift to a specific agency or purpose often choose to establish a designated fund. Almost any 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization may be designated to receive support for its mission.

Recently, dozens of students took part in the 2023 Pro Woman, Pro Baby, Pro Love, Pro Life Writing Contest sponsored by The Judith Manno Stager Right to Life Fund in conjunction with the Advanced Placement English classes at Elk County Catholic High School. Students were asked to respond to one simple question: Why are you pro-life?

Entries were collected and distributed to a very special group of judges from Ohio. This group of young Catholics in their 20’s who fought hard for “Issue One”, a proposition to change amendments to the Ohio constitution regarding abortion rights, were disappointed after the November election. They found hope in the submissions of the students and found solace in their realization that there are soldiers for life waiting in the wings. The juniors and seniors entering the contest will soon leave our area to pursue higher education and their well-formed voices will save lives.

The Community Foundation is here to help donors make a lasting and meaningful impact on their community by establishing funds that meet their charitable wishes. The Elk County Community Foundation and the McKean County Community Foundation are affiliates of the Community Foundation of the Northern Alleghenies.

ECCF awards $13,000 to Fox Township Little League

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PHOTO: Fox Township Little League was awarded $13,000 in grant monies from the Elk County Development Fund and the Harrison and Muriel Dauer Stackpole Family Fund, both managed by the Elk County Community Foundation. Receiving the award on behalf of the Fox Township Little League included members from baseball/softball teams. Front: Emily Yeager, Johnny Yeager, and Tucker Colello. Back: Paula Fritz Eddy (ECCF), Russ Yeager and Amber Colello.

St. Marys, PA: The Elk County Community Foundation (ECCF) was pleased to award a grand total of $13,000 to the Fox Township Little League. Grant dollars were distributed from the Elk County Development Fund and the Harrison and Muriel Dauer Stackpole Family Fund. Each of these funds are managed by ECCF, an affiliate of the Community Foundation of the Northern Alleghenies. This award will go towards an outdoor pavilion that will include a removable batting cage and storage for various recreational purposes. This will benefit all who participate in the little leagues and softball teams, as well as other youth and families local to this area.

Throughout the year, both the Elk County Development Fund and the Harrison and Muriel Dauer Stackpole Family Fund hold multiple cycles for eligible organizations to apply for granting monies. This allows for more opportunities for ECCF to achieve philanthropic goals and to assist with projects that will benefit our communities.

In addition, there are various types of funds, including many Donor Advised funds, managed by the Elk County Community Foundation. Every fund holds some capacity to give back to local projects and communities. If you are interested in creating a fund or would like to learn more about granting opportunities, reach out to ECCF for further information. Visit our website at www.elkcountyfoundation.org. Our office can also be contacted at 814-834-2125. Feel free to check out our social media pages for updates.

The Elk County Community Foundation and McKean County Community Foundation,  affiliates of the Community Foundation of the Northern Alleghenies, are non-profit grant-making organizations dedicated to improving the lives of people in our geographic area by partnering with philanthropic donors to help them meet their charitable goals.

Marzella Donor-Advised Fund donates to Hailey’s Reading Program Fund at ECCF

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PHOTO: Kinslee MacDonald, 2nd grader at FSG Elementary School and granddaughter of Jeff & Sonya Marzella, stands in front of the Hailey’s Reading Program vending machine with teacher, Marcia Raubenstrauch, one of the leaders of the group that established the Hailey’s Reading Program Fund.

Marzella Donor-Advised Fund donates to Hailey’s Reading Program Fund at ECCF

The Elk County Community Foundation (ECCF) offers a variety of fund options for donors to help them achieve their charitable objectives no matter how big or small. Two of those funds held at ECCF recently interacted when the Jeff and Sonya Marzella Donor Advised fund made a donation to the Hailey’s Reading Program Designated Fund, both achieving the purpose of their individual funds.

The Marzella Fund was established at ECCF in 2018. This type of fund is known as a Donor-Advised Fund, where the donors are actively involved with their philanthropy by making grant recommendations to be given to the charities of their choice. The Marzella’s chose to make a 2023 donation from their fund to support Hailey’s Reading Program at Ridgway’s Elementary School.

The Hailey’s Reading Program Designated Fund was set up at the Foundation in 2022 by FSG Elementary School faculty and the school’s parent teacher organization in memory of Hailey, an avid reader, who had been a student at the school. The proceeds from this fund are designated to go to a specific purpose: to purchase books on behalf of the Ridgway School District to maintain the book vending machine named in Hailey’s honor at the elementary school.

The type of fund you establish at the Foundation can be based on your own preferences. You can focus on specific organizations, issues or communities, or create a fund with a flexible purpose.

Donor Advised Funds (DAF), like the Jeff and Sonya Marzella Fund, are for individuals and families who want to support causes that are meaningful to them, while seeking active involvement in choosing their grant recipients. A donor-advised fund can live in perpetuity – or be spent down in a given time frame – according to the wishes of the donor outlined within the agreement established with the Foundation.

Establishing a Designated Fund, like the Hailey’s Reading Program Fund, provides you with a wonderful way to give back to one or more specific organizations that have touched your life. You identify the recipient(s) you wish to benefit with your gift, and our staff manages the annual distribution of funds from the endowment. Many designated funds continue to add donations to the fund to help the fund do good work forever.

There are many options for donors who wish to establish a fund including agency endowment, donor advised, designated, and scholarship funds. Contact the Elk County Community Foundation for guidance on what fund would work best for you. The Community Foundation is here to help donors make a lasting and meaningful impact on their community… now and forever. The Elk County Community Foundation and the McKean County Community Foundation are affiliates of the Community Foundation of the Northern Alleghenies.

Women Who Care awards $45,300 in grants at Annual Meeting

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Local organizations were presented with their grant awards by Women Who Care committee members

Photo:  The members of Women Who Care awarded $45,300 in grants to 13 local organizations at their 2023 annual business meeting held at the Johnsonburg Firehall. Grant recipients were presented with checks by members of the Women Who Care Steering Committee.

Front:  Leslie Bauer, Elk Co. Humane Society; Women Who Care Steering Committee Members, June Sorg, Kris Kronenwetter, Barb Duffy, Diane Colgan, and Paula Micale; Elizabeth Mader, Faithful Quilters.

Middle: Harriet Stahli and Gloria Molella from Helping Hands Food Pantry; Kathy Ford, Neighbors Feeding Neighbors; Chi Catalone, PSU Suicide Prevention; Laura Funaki, Friends of Twin Lakes.

Back: Elizabeth Erich, Humane Society; Sean Rockmore, Cen-Clear; Joe Jacob, Boys & Girls Club of St. Marys; Nick Burdick, St. Marys Ambulance Association; Bob Asti and Bill Kraus, Crystal Fire Department.

Grant recipients missing from photo were Special Olympics, Alcohol & Drug Abuse Services and Tri-county Rails to Trails.

Women Who Care awards $45,300 in grants at Annual Meeting

Women Who Care (WWC) awarded $45,300 in grants to local nonprofit organizations after 190 members of WWC cast their votes for their favorite projects at the Annual Meeting in October. Women Who Care brings women from diverse backgrounds together to combine their philanthropic leadership and strengthen the Elk County community through the power of collective giving.

The 2023 annual meeting was held at the Johnsonburg Firehall. Attendees enjoyed a delicious dinner, grant presentations and voting, entertainment by the Allegheny Harmonizers, the awarding of grants, and a delightful social evening with members and guests.

The Women Who Care organization holds a donor advised fund at the Elk County Community Foundation. Since its inception in 2009, the WWC fund has awarded over $391,000 in grants to enhance local nonprofit programs. The fund was established and is perpetuated by a group of community-minded women who continue to work together to address and support issues that are important to women. WWC membership now numbers 281 amazing women who generously donate each year to the fund. The financial impact of the combined donations of so many women has made a huge difference in our communities. In addition to the grants given by Women Who Care, another goal of WWC is to educate the membership on the type of financial needs encountered by our nonprofit organizations as they work to provide their services to families in our communities.

WWC offers the opportunity for every woman to become a member and participate in charitable giving in their community. Members each donate a very affordable $100 or more annually. All donations are pooled together each year to determine the amount available for granting that year. WWC extends an invitation to all area women to join their organization.

For more details about Women Who Care membership please contact the Elk County Community Foundation at 814-834-2125 or by email at eccf@elkcountyfoundation.org.

The Elk County Community Foundation and the McKean County Community Foundation are affiliates of the Community Foundation of the Northern Alleghenies.