WHY CHOOSE US?
Reputation, experience, flexibility and cost-effectiveness.
We’ve worked hard to build a reputation for community leadership and success. We are both a charity and the region’s largest non-government funder to other charities. By partnering with us, you get the benefit of an experienced, respected and flexible partner, committed to getting the most out of what you give.
We’ve been helping people just like you to achieve their philanthropic goals since 1977. Our methods are tried and true, and our results speak for themselves. Our experience is invaluable in helping you plan your gifts for the greatest and most lasting impact.
Afterall – Giving is the difference, that makes a difference!
“At the Central Okanagan Foundation, we’ve been building a vibrant, caring community for more than 46 years.”
Enabling Donors to Make Immediate Impact
As a community foundation, our primary mandate is to provide an ongoing source of funding for the charitable sector by maintaining invested funds in perpetuity and distributing the income from those funds back into the community to registered charitable organizations and projects. We also enable donors to make an immediate impact by flowing through donations directly to charitable causes.
We provide funding for many agencies that are crucial to the health and well-being of our community. Agencies that we fund focus on a diverse range of causes that reflect the diversity and needs of our community, from children’s programming to animal welfare, from education to health, to the arts and heritage preservation. We currently have 8 fields of interest; we’re sure at least one will have meaning for you! The strength of the Central Okanagan Foundation is our ability to respond to diverse interests rather than having to focus on one sector.
In the endowment program, we pool the gifts of many donors and invest them in a responsible way to ensure maximum return on investment while avoiding risk and ensuring enduring income. The capital is held in perpetuity while the income on the capital is distributed to registered charitable organizations.
Contributed capital is now sitting at over $40.0. Since inception in 1977, the Central Okanagan Foundation has contributed over $27 million back into the community as grants and allocations on funds. We currently have over 11 community funds, 139 agency funds and 200 Family funds for a total of 350 separate endowment funds which are tracked individually for our donors, and we are growing.
We offer a variety of different gift options. We would love to tell you more about the flexible options we offer.
The key strength of a community foundation is our connectedness in the community. We make it our job to make philanthropy easy for you. We know our local charities and our specialty is matching up our donors with causes that appeal to them. To make your gift meaningful we are happy to help you decide how the income from your fund can be used to support a favourite charity or an area of interest. We also have a “Community Fund” that will always remain relevant by being responsive to changing local needs and allows you to utilize our granting committees to make decisions on your behalf.
Many local charities already have endowment funds set up with us and would welcome donations to grow their funds. If you are a local registered charity looking to set up an agency endowment fund to ensure a sustainable source of income for the future, we would love to help you with that as well.
Understanding that there are sudden and emergent needs our communities and that Donors wish to see immediate impact, we also provide leadership on the pulse of the communities where dollars are needed the most. We offer flow-through or spend down funds to facilitate this area of interest as well.
Check out our updated list of Grant Recipients to see which agencies have already received grant monies through COF on an annual basis.