By Conny Bogaard, Executive Director

The summer is always a good time for reflection and review the goals we set at the beginning of the year. Are we following through on what we said we would do? One of the goals we set for 2018 is to explore ways to better serve the 15 counties in our area. Historically, our primary focus has been on Garden City and Finney County. This is no surprise since Garden City is the regional hub for work and business including many nonprofit organizations that apply for grants each year. These nonprofits may serve larger geographical areas such as High Plains Public Radio, or Russell Child Development Center, to name a few. Thanks to the work of these wonderful organizations people in rural communities have always benefited from the funding we provide. Yet we could do better to promote our work and make sure all 15 counties know about our grants and scholarships, or our free estate planning services, or starting a community fund for economic development. We need to make sure that our “I Promise”-message is well understood in all of southwest Kansas.

To that end we have invited the outlying communities to participate in our MatchDay-event this year. MatchDay is held on Tuesday, November 27^th which is nationally known as Giving Tuesday. On that day only, WKCF provides $50,000 in matching funds to the participating nonprofits. The money that the nonprofits raise can be used for immediate needs whereas the matching dollars go back into the endowed fund held at the Community Foundation. MatchDay thus covers both immediate and long-term needs. Organizations that are interested in starting a fund – and be eligible for MatchDay!- should contact our office. We are always happy to make a presentation to their board and explain how an endowment works, and what good it can do for their organization. Please spread the word about this wonderful opportunity. We hope to hear from you!