Rebecca Klug | Delaware Community Foundation

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Immediate Grants Available to Nonprofits Affected by COVID-19

Posted by Rebecca Klug

· Friday, March 27th, 2020

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Delaware COVID-19 Strategic Response Fund grants to be awarded weekly.

Delaware nonprofits affected by COVID-19 are invited to apply for grants from the Delaware COVID-19 Strategic Response Fund, housed at the Delaware Community Foundation and directed by a council of Delaware’s philanthropic leaders.

The application is now open at delcf.org/covid-grants. The deadline for the first round of awards is Monday, March 30, at noon. Only a few grants will be awarded in the first week. Nonprofits are encouraged to reapply weekly.

The maximum grant request is $50,000. In the first week, a total of $250,000 will be awarded. The total amount to be awarded is expected to increase in subsequent weeks, depending on funding available.

Grants from the Strategic Response Fund will initially focus on urgent needs related to COVID-19, then expand over time to more structural and long-term needs in three funding areas: 

Front-Line Grants fund nonprofits encountering increased demand for services due to COVID-19. This includes services to people who are financially vulnerable, homeless and facing health challenges.
Service-Challenged Grants fund nonprofits that need assistance modifying their service delivery models extremely rapidly due to COVID-19.
Collateral Damage Grants fund nonprofits facing extreme difficulty because of lost revenue due to closures, cancellations and other challenges related to COVID-19.

Applications will be accepted weekly on a rolling basis and grants will be awarded weekly for as long as funding is available and community needs exist related to COVID-19. Each week, applications received by noon on Monday will be reviewed, grantees will be selected Friday morning, and funds will be transferred Friday afternoon.

About the Fund

The Delaware COVID-19 Strategic Response Fund targets emerging and evolving needs of the state’s most-impacted communities, for the longer term needs of our community.

The fund, housed at the DCF, is structured to help Delaware-serving 501(c)3 organizations address a broad range of community needs. Target applicants are nonprofit organizations with deep roots in the community and a strong track record of serving people who are immediately and disproportionately suffering from the crisis.

Since the fund was launched on March 18, foundations, corporations and individuals have contributed and pledged more than $2 million in initial gifts. The fund already includes generous gifts from the Longwood Foundation ($1 million), Welfare Foundation ($200,000), Discover ($75,000), DCF ($75,000), WSFS Bank ($25,000) and others. Grants from the Strategic Response Fund will be coordinated with grants from United Way of Delaware’s Delaware Does More: COVID-19 Rapid Response Fund, which focuses on more immediate needs.

The Delaware COVID-19 Strategic Response Fund is part of the Delaware COVID-19 Emergency Response Initiative, a nonprofit collaborative response to the 2020 coronavirus pandemic. The DCF, Delaware Alliance for Nonprofit Advancement, Philanthropy Delaware and United Way of Delaware are partnering to coordinate charitable resources to maximize impact statewide during this crisis.

To learn more or contribute, visit delcf.org/covid19-fund.

Mark Carter of Dogfish Head Craft Brewery and the DCF's Stuart Comstock-Gay recording podcast episode

How Businesses Build Opportunity | Mark Carter

Posted by Rebecca Klug

· Friday, March 13th, 2020

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Mark Carter, director of Beer & Benevolence, the charitable arm of Dogfish Head Craft Brewery, talks about the role of businesses in building opportunity.

A Kent County native and Marine Corp veteran who has traveled around the world, Carter brings a “think globally, act locally” approach to Dogfish Head’s charitable giving, which focuses on arts, environment, and community. In addition to the brewery’s donations, Dogfish Head staff regularly volunteer for projects across the state.

Our nine-episode Building Opportunity in Delaware podcast series focuses on how can we build opportunity and strengthen community for all. DCF President & CEO Stuart Comstock-Gay talks with Delawareans who are building opportunity through the arts, faith communities, libraries and everything in between.

You can listen and subscribe on Apple, Spotify. and Google Podcasts. Find all podcast episodes at delcf.org/podcast.

Adriana Comacho-Church and Stuart Comstock-Gay recording podcast episode

How Libraries Build Opportunities | Adriana Camacho-Church

Posted by Rebecca Klug

· Friday, March 6th, 2020

· 5 Comments

Bear Library specialist Adriana Camacho-Church talks about the role of libraries in building opportunity. The Bear Library’s ESL programs for Spanish and Chinese speakers help people learn how to read, write, find job opportunities and integrate into their communities, benefiting the community as a whole. Camacho-Church also writes a monthly series in Delaware’s Out & About Magazine called “Worth Recognizing: Community Members Who Go Above and Beyond.”

You can listen and subscribe on Apple, Spotify. and Google Podcasts. Find all podcast episodes at delcf.org/podcast.

Rev. Edwin Estevez talking, gesturing broadly with an animated expression on his face

How Faith Communities Build Opportunity | Rev. Edwin Estevez

Posted by Rebecca Klug

· Friday, February 28th, 2020

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Rev. Edwin Estevez, senior pastor of Grace Church UMC and the Riverfront Church in Wilmington, talks about the role of the faith community in building opportunity. The son of Guatemalan immigrants, Estevez grew up in North Jersey and is now a proud Delawarean. With his leadership, Grace Church is launching a kitchen incubator to empower people struggling with poverty to learn culinary and restaurant skills, transforming the church campus into a green, energy-efficient example of “creation care,” and opening Grace Cafe, a welcoming “third space” for conversation and reflection over a cup of coffee.

You can listen and subscribe on Apple, Spotify. and Google Podcasts. Find all podcast episodes at delcf.org/podcast

Diane Laird and Stuart Comstock-Gay recording the podcast

Building Opportunity on Main Street | Diane Laird

Posted by Rebecca Klug

· Friday, February 21st, 2020

· 1 Comment

Diane Laird, executive director of the Downtown Dover Partnership, talks about building opportunity through collaboration and economic development. The DDP drives improved quality of life for the diverse residents, downtown workers, students, tourists, shoppers, kids, families and seniors who spend time in downtown Dover.

You can listen and subscribe on Apple, Spotify. and Google Podcasts. Find all podcast episodes at delcf.org/podcast.

Micheal Crumble and Stuart Comstock-Gay sitting at a table recording the podcast

Building Opportunity for Underserved Youth | Micheal Crumble

Posted by Rebecca Klug

· Friday, February 14th, 2020

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Micheal Crumble, director of the H. Fletcher Brown Boys & Girls Club in Wilmington, talks about building opportunity for underserved youth. Following a 20-year career in the military, Crumble found a second vocation creating opportunities for kids to learn and grow. Under his direction, the H. Fletcher Brown Boys & Girls Club recently opened a digital arts lab, funded in part by the DCF.

You can listen and subscribe on Apple, Spotify. and Google Podcasts. Find all podcast episodes at delcf.org/podcast.

Jacqueline Means at a table speaking into a microphone

Building Opportunity in STEM for Girls | Jacqueline Means

Posted by Rebecca Klug

· Friday, February 7th, 2020

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“STEM Queen” Jacqueline Means, 17-year-old founder of the Wilmington Urban STEM Initiative, talks about building opportunity for girls through STEM education. Jacqueline grew up in the high-poverty Southbridge neighborhood of Wilmington and is currently a senior at the Delaware Military Academy. She has been featured on The Today Show, Access Hollywood, The Q, and TedX for her work engaging girls in science, technology, engineering and math.

You can listen and subscribe on Apple, Spotify. and Google Podcasts.

David Stradley at a table speaking into a microphone

Building Opportunity through the Arts | David Stradley

Posted by Rebecca Klug

· Friday, January 31st, 2020

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In our third episode, David Stradley, producing artistic director of Delaware Shakespeare, talks about building opportunity and increasing community through the arts.

You can listen and subscribe on Apple, Spotify. and Google Podcasts.

Bryant Garcia and Stuart Comstock-Gay talking into mics at a table

Building Opportunity for Latino Communities | Bryant Garcia

Posted by Rebecca Klug

· Friday, January 24th, 2020

· 4 Comments

In our second episode, Bryant Garcia, immigration program coordinator at La Esperanza in Georgetown, talks about building opportunity for Latino communities.

You can listen and subscribe on Apple, Spotify. and Google Podcasts.

Building a Legacy of Giving: Bart Dalton & Tony Lunger

Posted by Rebecca Klug

· Tuesday, January 21st, 2020

· No Comments

When your financial goals include philanthropy, the Delaware Community Foundation can help you make your charitable giving simple, joyful and powerful. This includes helping your trusted financial advisor help you.

Recently, Tony Lunger, market manager for Delaware Wilmington Trust Wealth Advisory Services, and his client Bart Dalton, Esq. began working with the DCF to maximize Dalton’s philanthropic impact. We sat down with them to talk about their experience with the DCF.

Defining a Strategy for Giving

When Dalton decided to increase his giving and to give more strategically, Lunger pointed him to the DCF.

“There are lots of hurdles to be met with private foundations,” Lunger said, “which is why Wilmington Trust has a whole group that does foundation administration. It’s complicated, especially the taxes. A donor advised fund seemed to be the best fit for what Bart was trying to accomplish.”

A donor advised fund at the DCF includes all record keeping and accounting, various investment options, and access to a wealth of community and grantmaking expertise.

“The DCF is a prominent institution in this community,” Lunger said. “I consider the DCF to be synonymous with donor advised funds. We know there are others, but the DCF has been doing this for a long time and has a great reputation.”

A Vision for the Future

The donor advised fund Dalton set up at the DCF allows him to support the causes he’s most passionate about, education and criminal justice reform, with grants to Nativity Prep, the Ministry of Caring, the Equal Justice Initiative, the Foundation of the American College of Trial Lawyers, the Beau Biden Foundation and others.

Dalton’s desire to help others reflects the primary reason people give, Lunger said, even outweighing tax deductions. “First and foremost, philanthropy satisfies a basic human impulse to help and to give back.”

Dalton and Lunger agreed that tax benefits are only part of the motivation for giving. “You could just hand the IRS a check and not have any liability,” Dalton said, “but there are so many good people out there who could use just a little bit of help. And it’s a wonderful thing if you’ve been put in a circumstance where you can help things here and there.”

Through the donor advised fund, Dalton said, he gets to have a very hands-on approach to helping others. He appreciates the DCF’s easy-to-use online donor portal, which makes it simple to incorporate his DCF fund into his broader investment strategies.

Establishing a Legacy of Giving

An important part of giving for Dalton is establishing a legacy for future generations of his family. His goal, he said, is to have his three grandchildren sitting around a table together making decisions about the fund he has set up, still involved in helping the community in an ongoing way and understanding what we all get out of philanthropy.

“The DCF works very closely with clients’ advisors,” said Joan Hoge-North, DCF vice president for philanthropy, “and we often partner for the long term to help create a customized plan to help achieve a client’s unique charitable goals, realize tax benefits and maximize impact.”

Find out More!

To learn more about how the DCF can help you enhance your charitable giving, contact Joan Hoge-North at 302.504.5224.

Read a more in-depth version of this article that appeared in Delaware Banker magazine.

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