County 4-H Designated Gift Program
The Michigan 4-H Foundation routinely accepts and administers charitable contributions designated by the donor for support of a specific Michigan county 4-H program. The benefits of foundation management of county designated gifts include donor recognition and stewardship opportunities, state and federal tax benefits, financial accountability and record keeping.
DONATE TO A COUNTY 4-H PROGRAM
County Funds (Term Endowments)
The foundation manages county funds held in agency that provide annual support for 4-H programs. These funds are term endowments and can be invested with deposits of $5,000 or greater into two investment portfolios. Either the Capital Preservation Fund or the Capital Growth Fund. The interest earnings are then distributed to the county MSU Extension office.
The advantages include: 1) interest earnings that are typically higher because the foundation’s investment potential is higher than that of a single fund investment and 2) once the fund is established, it can receive donations from any source interested in your county 4-H program. These funds are not established as perpetual endowments; the corpus may be used under certain circumstances.
These counties have established existing county funds: Antrim, Hillsdale, Huron, Ingham, Kent, Lapeer, Lenawee, Missaukee, Oakland, Otsego, Schoolcraft, St. Joseph, Tuscola and Wexford.
Endowed Funds for County Support
Endowed gifts can be designated to support a specific county 4-H program. These funds are supported with a minimum gift of $30,000 for general county 4-H program support or for scholarship or annual award support.
- Learn more about endowment funds in general.
- Learn more about county 4-H endowment funds.
Counties with existing general 4-H endowments are: Allegan, Arenac, Barry, Branch, Calhoun, Chippewa, Clare, Clinton, Eaton, Grand Traverse, Gratiot, Hillsdale, Houghton-Keweenaw, Ingham, Ionia, Iosco, Isabella, Kalkaska, Kent, Lapeer, Lenawee, Macomb, Mason, Midland, Montcalm, Oakland, Ogemaw, Osceola, Ottawa, Sanilac, Shiawassee, St. Clair, St. Joseph, Washtenaw and Wayne.
A majority of the county endowment funds were established and/or grown through the Make the Match County Endowment Match Campaign from 2013-2019. Thanks to an investment from match pool donors, a 1:1 match was provided for each county endowment, up to $50,000. Leadership match pool donors were: The Herbert H. and Grace A. Dow Foundation, The Rollin M. Gerstacker Foundation, Gary and Eiko Seevers and the Seevers Family Foundation, Lana Dart, Noel and Sandra Stuckman, Arlon and Shirley Elser, Donald and Rebecca Jost, Dale and Sara Stuby, Wayne and Faye Adam, Larry and Julie Chapin, Thomas and Rhonda Coon, and Lowell and Marilyn Rothert.
Additional gifts are welcome to grow these funds.
DONATE TO A COUNTY ENDOWMENT