The Jennings County Community Foundation (JCCF) on Thursday announced it has received a matching fund grant totaling $750,000 as part of the eighth phase of Lilly Endowment Inc.’s initiative, Giving Indiana Funds for Tomorrow (GIFT VIII).
The unrestricted grant will allow the foundation to greatly increase its funding of local community nonprofits, JCCF executive director Kelly Kent said, noting this is the largest unrestricted grant the foundation has ever received.
“Annually, we’ve been able to award about $20,000 to $30,000” to local charitable organizations, Kent said. “With this, we hope to award up to $60,000.”
JCCF will use the funding to build its unrestricted community grants endowment fund as well as to support several community partners, including the Food Security Coalition, the Park Theatre Civic Centre, and Leadership Development Programs through the Jennings County Economic Development Commission.
Qualifying matching funds raised to support JCCF’s unrestricted endowment will be eligible for a $2 (grantor) to $1 (grantee) match from the endowment while qualifying matching funds raised for community projects and programs or capacity-building activities will be eligible for a $1 (grantor) to $1(grantee) match.
“This is a huge opportunity for Jennings County,” Kent said. “With this grant we can bolster great projects already going on in our community and build the unrestricted community grant endowment fund to provide more opportunities for many other nonprofits and worthy causes right here in Jennings County.
Through GIFT VIII Lilly Endowment has awarded matching fund grants totaling $133.8 million to community foundations serving all 92 of Indiana’s counties. Eligible community foundations submitted proposals requesting grants ranging from $100,000 to $15,000,000 based on the population of the counties they serve.
In 2023, Lilly Endowment launched GIFT VIII to help community foundations strengthen the towns, cities, and counties they serve. Matching fund grants are one of several funding opportunities designed to help community foundations promote long-term viability; further strengthen their abilities to lead; encourage board engagement; and support and develop strategic efforts to enhance the quality of life in their communities.
Currently the JCCF has raised $42k of the $300k needed for the unrestricted community grants endowment. Kent said she is confident the community will raise the matching funds needed by the deadline, Dec. 31, 2025. Contributions to the matching grant fund can be made at www.jenningscountygives.org, or at the office, 111 N. State St., North Vernon, during business hours Monday through Thursday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Friday, 8 a.m. to noon.
