How are community and private foundations redirecting COVID funds for a brighter future in our communities? Philanthropy is increasing as Foundations and Donor Advised Funds (DAFs) are called to distribute money now, rather than holding them in the “parking lot”. Legally, foundations are required to distribute 5% of their assets each year in grants to nonprofits. According to Market Watch, private foundations hold an estimated $1 trillion in assets and DAFs contain $120 billion. But the ultra-high net wealth individuals and foundations are advocating for distribution now. For example, the “Patriotic Millionaires” are advocating for the next stimulus package to ensure philanthropists distribute 10% money to charities while the country grapples with the pandemic. Also, to encourage people to give more freely in response to the coronavirus pandemic, the California couple David and Jennifer Risher created the #HalfMyDAF challenge which offers matching donations to donors who pledge to empty half of their donor-advised-fund account and direct that money to charity by September 30.Fundamentally, a foundation is an investment vehicle where dividends are distributed to charity. Benefits include strategic advice on giving, ability to aggregate funds overtime to support large initiatives and, of course, tax burden reduction. A community foundation’s mission is very general: to improve the quality of life in a given area. In this episode, we chat with Jim Becker, the President and CEO of the Richmond Community Foundation of California. Jim offers a thoughtful and holistic perspective on community needs as well as strategies for funding, not just in his region but nationally.Head to CreatingCommunityForGood.com for full show notes, key takeaways and episode resources. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.