Welcome to a new decade— 2020 is here and we are excited for what is in store for Knox and Warren Counties. Last year was certainly exciting at your Community Foundation. We celebrated our 15-year anniversary with a birthday tour throughout the region. From Williamsfield to Roseville, Monmouth to Knoxville, and many stops in between, we enjoyed celebrating the incredible work in Knox and Warren Counties thanks to philanthropy. During our birthday tour we handed out hundreds of pairs of sunglasses because we believe the future of our region is bright. We visited with and learned from members of our original board of directors and set aside time to look at what’s ahead. As one of our original board members, Judge James Stewart said, “The possibilities are endless.”
Endless possibilities are what we see in 2020.
This year we will focus on making the most out of every moment. Whether helping connect community members looking to making a difference, or spreading the important message that endowment is the greatest way to effect permanent, positive change forever, our team looks forward to working with you this year to connect you with the causes you care about.
A few weeks ago, I asked our team what their visions are related to their individual roles in 2020. Their responses excite me and further reiterate the great year that is ahead of us.
As we look to further share our mission, Karlie, our, director of communications noted that her goal is to more directly share the story of our impact and that she’s excited to put further emphasis on the results made possible thanks to local philanthropy. You can look forward to more stories in 2020 about how generosity changes lives right here in Knox and Warren Counties.
Granting is key to our mission as a Community Foundation. We are always looking for ways to make our grants more relevant and impactful. As I’ve visited with Tiffany, our director of grants and programs, our conversation is centered on the needs of our community, and to use that knowledge in our region to be more effective, creative, and progressive grant makers. This fully aligns with the sentiment that yes; the possibilities are endless as there are many ways we can better serve our region via granting.
As a community foundation, another of our core tenants is growth. This directly fits with the role of our director of finance and operations, Shawn, who is the newest member of our team. His enthusiasm is great and his willingness to wrap his mind around our work is exciting. We continue looking at ways to build and grow our financial resources to further help local nonprofits thrive through their endowments. Additionally, your community foundation is learning the ropes of mission impact investing, which we look at as another exciting way to impact our region.
We always encourage you to call or visit our office. We like to say, “The coffee is always on.” And that’s thanks to Lori our administrative assistant. Lori looks forward to greeting even more new faces in this new year and helping our donors and community members connect with the people and resources best for them. Lori is a wealth of knowledge when it comes to working with your Community Foundation and she’s always ready to help you make the most out of your time working with our team.
Community Treasures Thrift Shop is another important component of our work. It’s an exciting place to donate, shop at or volunteer with. Under the management of Sam, her vision for 2020 is to continue building a culture of generosity at Community Treasures and that generosity happens in a variety of ways at the thrift shop on Main Street. We hope if you haven’t before, you take some time to visit Community Treasures—you never know what you may find!
Our future is bright and our team is amped to further serve our region this year. Thank you for your commitment to local philanthropy. We look forward to connecting with you this year, for the good of your community.
