Community Foundation Created To Benefit Mount Carroll

By Mick Parsons For The Prairie Advocate News

MOUNT CARROLL – During last week’s city council meeting, Alderman Doug Bergen (Ward 2), who is also a member of The People for Progress, announced the creation of the Mount Carroll Community Foundation (MCCF). It will be a Community Foundation that exists for the purpose of gathering charitable gifts and build resources for the future that will address important needs and issues in Mount Carroll. The mission of the MCCF is “to encourage, assist, and advise donors and prospective donors how they and Mount Carroll would benefit to achieve their charitable objectives to meet worthy charitable, benevolent, cultural, economic, educational, religious, civic, health, and scientific needs.”

The foundation is still in the process of creating a volunteer Board of Directors consisting of between nine and thirteen members; recommendations may be submitted to founding board members including Heather Houzenga (Main Street Art Guild) Lou Schau (CDC, Market Street Commons, Brick Street Coffee), Doug Bergren (Alderman), Mike Risko (Alderman), Terri Miller, or Bob Watson.

In addition to encouraging charitable gifts from individuals and families, the Mount Carroll Community Foundation will encourage corporations and non-profit organizations to establish their own endowments and restricted funds.

As an affiliate of the Community Foundation of the Great River Bend (CFGRB) based in Bettendorf, Iowa, the Mount Carroll Community Foundation will use the administrative support, investment, expertise, and guidance of an organization that has met National Standards for the U.S. Community Foundations as established by the Council of Foundations. The Community Foundation of the Great River Bend has 14 affiliates in 17 counties in eastern Iowa and Western Illinois, with assets totalling nearly $73 million as of December 31, 2010. The total number of grants distributed in the region in 2010 was $6 million; CFGRB is the third largest community foundation in Iowa and the second largest in Illinois.