Partnering with Marietta Community Foundation Enables You to Contribute with Confidence

Marietta Community Foundation is an Ohio not-for-profit corporation qualified as tax-exempt under Internal Revenue Code Section 501(c)(3). Gifts, contributions, bequests, and foundation grants qualify the contributors for U.S. income tax deductions under IRS Code Section 170.

The National Standards seal indicates official confirmation from the Council on Foundations that we have met the most rigorous standards in philanthropy and that we have demonstrated a commitment to financial security, transparency, and accountability.

 

Why Giving Through Us Just Makes Sense

  1. We are a local organization with deep roots in the community. Founded in 1974, the Marietta Community Foundation has distributed millions of dollars to charities in the Mid-Ohio Valley since its creation. You can learn more about our history, here.

  2. We offer different fund options to match your unique philanthropic goals. We can assist in identifying which fund type best fits your goals, whether it's a donor-advised fund, a scholarship fund, a designated fund, a field of interest fund, or an unrestricted fund. 

  3. We offer maximum tax advantages under state and federal law. The IRS recognizes us as an established public charity, so you can earn the maximum deduction at the time of your gift, and can then advise you to distribute grants over time allowing you to be more thoughtful about your giving.

  4. We provide highly personalized service tailored to each individual’s charitable and financial interests. With our knowledge, we make donors aware of local needs and local opportunities, enabling us to create giving strategies that reflect our donors’ unique interests.

  5. We accept a wide variety of assets and can facilitate even the most complex forms of giving. You can learn more about the many ways that you can give through Marietta Community Foundation below.

  6. Our professional staff has broad knowledge regarding community issues and needs. We keep ourselves educated on all areas of community need - including the arts, economic development, education, environment, health care, human services, and others. Our staff can help you target where your grants will have the greatest impact.

  7. We partner with professional advisors to create highly effective approaches to charitable giving. By partnering with professional advisors, we help clients increase their current income, increase their beneficiaries’ inheritance, leave a legacy in the community, and teach their children about philanthropy.

  8. We multiply the impact of gift dollars by pooling them with other gifts. Each fund at the Foundation builds your initial donation through managed investment pools. This allows your dollars to keep on giving.

  9. We build endowment funds that benefit the community forever and help create personal legacies. Your gifts to the community have enduring value when channeled through the foundation. Our permanent endowments will continue to grow and make grants forever.

  10. We are a community leader, convening agencies and coordinating resources to create positive change. Marietta Community Foundation is more than a charitable giving partner. And it's more than a way to positively impact our community. It’s a shared belief that together we will meet each day knowing that in real and tangible ways, we are making tomorrow better.

 

Don’t only take our word for it…

JENNIFER CHRISTY, JIM CHRISTY FUND FOR KIDS

“Marietta Community Foundation is a great asset to anyone who wants to give back to this community. Not only do they make giving easier, but their expertise with local issues is phenomenal.”

ERIC ERB, ERB FAMILY FUND

“The Foundation is a well-oiled machine; very efficient with no waste. Their due diligence will help protect your investments in this community.”

JOHN WHARFF III, BIG JOHN WHARFF ATHLETIC FUND, WMOA FOUNDATION FUND

“The idea that I can make a monetary donation on behalf of, or in the memory of an individual or family is my ‘go to’. I know flowers last a week, hand-written notes hopefully a little longer, but I’m certain that our donations to MCF under the watch of their good stewardship will transcend generations.”

 

Put Your Good Intentions Into Action         

Most contributions to the Foundation are given to our Community Impact Fund. This fund allows gifts to be used for a broad range of good works and will be invested and distributed at the discretion of the Board of Governors. Often, these funds are needed for immediate assistance to families and organizations in unforeseen situations. Board oversight and accurate reporting are your assurance that every gift is used wisely.

Another vital way to contribute to the Foundation, and, in turn, the community, is to donate to our Friends of the Foundation Fund. This fund goes directly toward the administrative costs of running the Foundation successfully. In using a separate fund for overhead costs, the Foundation ensures more unrestricted funds and specific donations can be used for grant cycles and local needs. Contributing to this fund preserves the Foundation’s services and impact in our area.

If you wish to support a particular cause or want to be a more active participant in your charitable giving, we offer four other types of funds. Each fund at the Foundation builds your initial donation through managed investment pools, allowing your dollars to keep on giving.

Giving Methods That Match Your Unique Needs

  • The most common form of charitable giving is cash. Donors can mail in cash or a check to the Foundation's office or stop by during office hours. Credit Cards may also be used via PayPal. Instructions for Credit Card payments can be found here.

    A gift of appreciated securities (such as stock, bonds, and mutual funds) can also be used to establish a fund or add to an existing fund.

    Gifts of real estate include a gift of a house or other personal residence, farm, commercial building, and income-producing or non-income-producing land. This type of gift must be evaluated by the Foundation before being accepted.

  • Naming Marietta Community Foundation in your will or trust means you can support your favorite causes and benefit the community in the future.

    • Leave a specific dollar amount, percentage of your estate, or what remains after other bequests have been satisfied.

    • Create a named fund or give to an existing Marietta Community Foundation fund

    • Bequests to the Foundation qualify for a charitable deduction for the full donation so your heirs will not pay estate tax on these assets.

  • Giving through a charitable remainder trust allows you to receive income for the life of the trust, with the remainder going to your community.

    • It is a trust that pays either a fixed or variable income to you or your named beneficiaries for life or for a fixed term not exceeding 20 years, or a combination of the two.

    • When the trust term expires, the remaining assets in the trust pass to Marietta Community Foundation to establish a fund or add to an existing fund at the Foundation.

    • You receive a tax deduction for the present value of the gift the year the trust is funded.

  • A charitable lead trust (CLT) enables you to make a significant charitable gift now while transferring substantial assets to beneficiaries later.

    • A trust is set up from which Marietta Community Foundation receives annual payments throughout your lifetime for a specific number of years.

    • The distributions go to your fund at the Foundation and then to the charities you specify.

    • When the trust terminates, the remaining principal is returned to you or, more typically, your children or other loved ones at reduced tax cost or tax-free.

  • Having assets in your IRA or other qualified retirement plans name Marietta Community Foundation is a simple and effective way to benefit the community while avoiding significant, often unanticipated taxes.

    • You can designate that after your death, assets remaining in the plan are to be contributed to a named fund at the Foundation.

  • For those whose need for life insurance has decreased, making a gift of an unneeded policy can be a convenient and effective way of meeting your charitable goals.

    • Transferring ownership of a cash value policy to Marietta Community Foundation makes you eligible for a charitable tax deduction based on its current value. You also reduce estate taxes, since the value of the policy is removed from your estate.

 

When You Make a Gift, You Make a Difference

Online

  • Click here to make your gift online.

  • If your gift is in honor or memory of someone, please indicate the honoree in the notes/memo.

  • If your gift should be designated to a particular fund or cause, please indicate the recipient in the notes/memo.

  • PayPal is a safe and secure platform for making online donations. Through a combination of technological innovation and strategic partnerships, PayPal creates better ways to manage and move money and offers choice and flexibility when sending payments, paying, or getting paid.

Mail

  • Make checks payable to Marietta Community Foundation

  • Send donations to P.O. Box 77, Marietta, OH, 45750, Attn: Heather Allender

In-Person

  • You can drop off your donation at our office located at 100 Putnam St. Marietta, OH 45750

  • Our normal office hours are 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Stay Connected

Sign up for our monthly eNewsletters. We deliver only the best content and always respect your privacy.