Community Foundation of Washington County plans fundraising dinner

On Monday night, the Community Foundation of Washington County is giving people the opportunity to enjoy a catered dinner while supporting local philanthropy.

The Foundation will hold its 12th Annual Chef’s Spotlight Dinner on Nov. 8 in Dallmeyer Hall at the Washington County Fairgrounds.

“It’s our annual fundraising dinner,” Executive Director Millie Youngquist said. “We didn’t hold it last year because of COVID, but we are going to do it this year.”

The event begins with a wine tasting at 5:30 p.m. with win from Revasser Winery in Ainsworth.

The dinner, catered by Jerry and Margie Sweeting of Riverside, begins at 6 p.m.

“We will have a dessert auction again, and the proceeds are going to benefit our foundation, as well as the Washington Betterment Foundation,” Youngquist said. “They have a fund with our foundation, and they will give a presentation on what they do with their endowment funds.”

Youngquist explained that the money raised from the dinner helps to cover the Foundation’s operating expenses throughout the year.

The Community Foundation of Washington County was established in 2006.

It first partnered with a foundation in Davenport, then they moved their funds to the Greater Cedar Rapids Community Foundation in 2016.

“Every county in Iowa has a community foundation,” Youngquist said. “They do the same thing that we do. Counties that have a casino don’t get any money from the state for their community foundation.”

She explained that the purpose of the Foundation is to promote philanthropy.

“People, either now or as part of their estate plans, can leave something to their favorite charities,” she said. “We create legacies so people can go on. It’s permanent, and the money will keep growing because it’s invested in such a way that when you take your distribution, you don’t get all of the gains. You just get part of it, so it’s slowly growing.”

The Foundation helps non-profit groups and donors to make endowments which can only benefit non-profit causes.

“An individual can create an endowment, and the money from that fund can go to a non-profit that they designate or decide every year where they want the money to go,” Youngquist explained. “Money: You can spend it, save it or give it away. With an endowment, you can do all three.

“You can invest the money, and every year, a portion of that money comes as a distribution that you give to a non-profit cause – something in the community that you want to see keep going.”

Some local nonprofits that benefit are Crooked Creek Christian Camp, Friends of Lake Darling State Park, HACAP, the Highland Community Schools, Hospice of Washington County, the Kalona Historical Society, the Kalona Public Library, the Parkside Activities Center in Wellman, Washington Library and the Washington Betterment Foundation.

“If the organization is a 501(c)3 organization, it is easy to set something up,” Youngquist said.

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