This summer, the Humboldt Area Foundation + Wild Rivers Community Foundation granted more than $1.1 million to 130 recipients. The grants represent the annual payouts from designated funds. These are funds created to provide long-term support to one or more organizations specified by the donor when the fund is established.
Organizations receiving funding through the annual payout program include the Humboldt Senior Resource Center, Hospice of Humboldt, Sequoia Humane Society, Planned Parenthood of Northern California, Food for People, the Humboldt County Library and many more.
“Community members choose to establish designed funds when they want to provide a reliable source of annual funding for groups they support. Many of our designated funds were created through someone’s will or trust to continue to support the organizations they care about beyond their lifetime,” says Laurel
Dalsted, Director of Donor Relations.
Once a designated fund is established, the Foundation provides investment, administration, and development services, allowing the funds to grow and provide financial support over the long term. “We hear often that the recipient organizations are excited about the annual payout. These funds are reliable and steady, and because of our payout policies, the grant size usually stays the same or can even grow as the fund grows. They provide important, long-term support for organizations,” adds Dalsted.
Meredith Knowles, the Director of Grantmaking, notes that the grants are distributed each year to the intended recipients, without asking recipients to submit applications or follow-up reporting. “This allows organizations to spend less time on paperwork and more time focusing on what matters most: delivering their services to the community,” says Knowles.
Currently, the Foundation manages 131 designated funds, with the majority created from bequest or estate gifts. Some of the most recent funds that made their first payouts this year include the Robert L. Ringwald, Friends for Life, and the David & Carol Dillon Memorial funds.
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Read through more highlights in the 2025 Summer/Fall Newsletter.