This article is sponsored by the Ashland County Community Foundation.
ASHLAND — Christy and Doug Haidet are very Ashland-minded in their family.
Doug has been enmeshed in the community for 15 years, especially since his days as a writer at the Ashland-Times Gazette. Christy has always had an interest in philanthropy, specifically with social justice and educational causes. Both envision a future for their baby boy, Murphy, in a thriving community.
“We have always tried to be incredibly mindful about where we spend our money, buying local whenever we can,” the Haidets said. “We have also tried to give back whenever possible, as there are many local charitable organizations that do incredible work.”
It was the perfect recipe for the couple, both in their 30s, to create a donor advised fund with the Ashland County Community Foundation (ACCF).
Donor advised funds are personal charitable grantmaking funds, allowing donors to use a combination of principal and investment income to support programs, projects and organizations they care about.
“It’s a very unique type of non-endowed fund, which is anti-typical for community foundations, where a good portion of assets are permanently endowed,” said Jim Cutright, president and CEO of the Ashland County Community Foundation.
“It gives a person an opportunity to have their own grantmaking fund, where you have advising authority and flexibility to direct grants from your fund to charitable organizations about which you care.”
With help from the Foundation, the Haidets created the “Christy and Doug Haidet Everlong Fund,” named after one of their favorite songs. Their goal in establishing a donor advised fund was to grow the dollars they had already set aside for philanthropic endeavors.
“(The name) seemed fitting because we hope we are able to pull from the fund to contribute to a variety of different charitable causes long into the future,” the Haidets said.
“It obviously takes some time to get into a situation where you can contribute in some way financially, and we knew if we worked with the ACCF – where we would be able to start a fund that grows over time under their watchful eye – it would be a great way to contribute in a variety of ways through the years.”
According to Cutright, there is a “triple-A benefit” of establishing a donor advised fund with the ACCF: Access, anonymity and accountability.
With access, the Foundation is able to provide information about local nonprofits that may not be available otherwise so you can make an educated decision on where your dollars go. Anonymity with a donor advised fund means the donor does not have to be identified if they don’t want to be. And the Foundation holds nonprofits accountable for the dollars they accept from donor advised funds, ensuring your dollars have the intended impact.
“It’s a way to connect to the community using the Foundation as the intermediary because we have close connections with the organizations doing the work that needs supported,” Cutright said. “We have our finger on the pulse of what’s happening in the community from a philanthropic standpoint. We make sure your dollars are being impactful.”
The Foundation also holds the donors accountable for actually using the money in their donor advised funds.
“We work closely with donors to make certain these dollars are not just warehoused. That’s not the purpose,” Cutright added. “It doesn’t do anyone any good for this money to be parked at the Foundation. We work closely and encourage, at minimum, an annual distribution from their fund.”
“People like these funds because grants can happen as often as monthly, and any number of organizations can receive the dollars,” he said. “It gives donors opportunities to address and respond to needs as they may change over the years.”
A donor advised fund also allows donors to give on one schedule and make grants on another schedule. For example, a donor could make their contribution before Dec. 31 to receive tax benefits for the 2021 year, and then make distributions in the future when they discover a charitable cause they want to support.
The process of creating and using a donor advised fund has been rewarding for the Haidets, and smooth thanks to the work of the Foundation.
“A donor advised fund with the ACCF offers a lot of value and flexibility. Once we had it fully-funded, we were able to begin granting to the causes of our choice,” the Haidets said. “The ACCF does everything they can to help grow our money through investments, and as those earnings add up, we can further supplement our grantmaking to amazing causes without having to set aside additional dollars.”
“It’s such a great opportunity because it helps us stay involved for more than simply a one-time donation. And working with the Foundation has allowed us to hear about giving opportunities we otherwise would never have known about.”
The minimum amount to establish a donor advised fund at the ACCF is $10,000, the lowest threshold of any fund at the Foundation. Any donor advised fund can be funded over a five-year period; occasionally people will put $2,000 in a year for five years. But no grants can be made from the fund until it reaches the $10,000 amount.
“It’s easy to assume that setting up a fund is something outside of your financial reach,” the Haidets said. “But there are several options to help you save into the fund so that, in time, it works for you. We were able to invest a portion of money we had set aside for philanthropic efforts, and we also contributed a set amount each month until we reached our fund goal.”
Donor advised funds have quickly become the Foundation’s most popular type of fund. Cutright said when he came into the role of president and CEO a decade ago, the Foundation had only eight donor advised funds. They are currently up to 55 such funds.
In the past three years alone, these donor advised funds have partnered with the Foundation to supplement grantmaking by more than $700,000.
“That’s pretty significant,” Cutright said with a smile.
Donor advised funds can also create a legacy of giving. Families have the opportunity to name a successor advisor beyond their lifetimes.
“A person can name their children to be the successor advisor,” Cutright said. “It can teach your kids to look beyond themselves. I absolutely love it when they’re trying to build a family tradition of philanthropy.”
A legacy of giving is certainly appealing to the Haidets — especially when it comes to baby Murphy.
“We have been so excited each time we’ve had the chance to make contributions to causes in at least some small way,” they said. “So often people think of setting up a fund or scholarship as something they will do when they pass away. We wanted to be here to see our dollars put to use.”
“We also appreciate the fact that people with better financial minds than ours are working with our fund to ensure it grows over time so we can continue to donate into the future.”
