What’s an endowment? An endowment is a collection of money that is given to an organization or institution with a stipulation that the funds will be invested to earn interest rather than spent immediately.

The Center for Rural Affairs’ endowment, the Granary Foundation, http://www.cfra.org/support/granary , was created by the Center for the sole purpose of serving some of the financial needs of the organization out of the Granary’s annual earnings.

With sound financial management, the Granary has provided over $2 million to further some of the Center’s most crucial and timely work over the last decade, without diminishing the endowment’s principal.

I have spoken with scores of individuals about our Granary Foundation over the last year. Most commonly, people tell me they are not wealthy enough to give to an endowment. And I understand the sentiment.

However, there are many ways that people can give to an endowment like the Granary. Insurance, annuities and trusts, as well as gifts of stock, and, of course, cash gifts of all sizes went into building the Center’s nearly $6 million Granary endowment.

If you appreciate the idea of providing a gift that keeps on giving to the Center, contact us. We would be thrilled to discuss the possibilities. Call John Crabtree to begin the conversation, 402.687.2103 x 1010.