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Commissioners OK up to $200,000 to nonprofit
BY ELLIS ARNOLD EARNOLD@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
When disaster strikes, relief money that comes from the state and federal government can take a long time to arrive. But a private nonpro t can work faster.
at’s according to Mike Waid, director of the Douglas County Community Foundation, a nonpro t that is building up a “community emergency relief fund” that can help take care of people when their lives get turned upside down.
“I always say the community foundation is the Red Cross” of the Douglas County community, said Abe Laydon, one of the county’s elected leaders.
His comments came at a July 18 meeting between the foundation and county o cials, where Laydon and one other county commissioner voted to give the foundation up to $200,000 toward its emergency fund.
And “100% of the county’s match goes directly into that fund — no fees, no overhead,” Waid told Colorado Community Media.
e money the county authorized will be “matched” with up to $200,000 of funding the nonpro t raises through an upcoming event.
‘Quarterback’ an emergency e donation’s approval comes against the backdrop of damage dealt by a tornado that tore through neighborhoods on June 22 in Highlands Ranch, leaving downed trees, branches and other debris strewn about.
Since the tornado did not become a “displacement event” — meaning houses weren’t torn away — the foundation’s response was not as intensive as it could be in a di erent disaster situation, according to Waid. But the foundation still stepped in to provide water, snacks and Gatorade to volunteers while they cleaned up debris, Waid said.
In a di erent emergency — such as a mass shooting, a re or another natural disaster — the foundation can work with other nonpro ts in Douglas County to assist the public in other ways.
For example, if the immediate problem in a disaster is food insecurity, “we’re able to activate those nonpro t partners — basically quarterback the (emergency) on their behalf,” Waid said.
A search-and-rescue event or transportation issues are other needs the foundation can step in to help with in dire times.
And “we would be able to fund the mental health needs right out of the gate for those rst responders that are dealing with those tragedies,” Waid said.
County backs gala fundraising e foundation will support rst responders in a di erent way at an event in September that it calls its inaugural “Heroes Gala.”
“It’s going to be an opportunity for us to showcase and honor rst responders and active military,” Waid said, adding: “Not only are we going to be honoring those rst responders (that night), but we are speci cally raising money for our community relief fund.” e foundation intends for the county’s matching funds to drive donations from other sources.
“People need to see, ‘Hey, the county is committed to this’” and decide to contribute too, a person with the foundation’s team said during the July 18 meeting.
County funding source e county commissioners ap - proved the county’s donation to come from funding related to the federal American Rescue Plan Act, often called ARPA. omas’ newsletter days before the vote implied that supporting the foundation’s request for funding would not be “ scally conservative.” e county commissioners began a partnership with Douglas County Community Foundation in 2018 to help people in need in the county, according to omas’ newsletter. e newsletter expressed the opinion that “the Douglas County Community Foundation needs to wean itself o county dollars.”
( e American Rescue Plan Act is a $1.9 trillion economic stimulus bill signed into law in March 2021 with a goal to support the economic and public health recovery from the coronavirus pandemic.)
Commissioner Lora omas, who was not present at the July 18 discussion and vote, had expressed concerns with the move to spend money. (Laydon and Commissioner George Teal approved the spending.)
“For several years now, our county has given DCCF over $380,000 for DCCF to organize and get about its stated purpose of helping those in need,” the newsletter said.
Laydon said during the meeting, regarding the foundation, that “the hope and the dream is independence and autonomy and the ability to generate revenue independent of the county.” e foundation’s team emphasized funds from the county would be “seed money” intended to drive private donations.
‘100% of the dollars’ Waid, the foundation’s director, said the cost of putting on the gala is covered by selling sponsorships.
So in terms of the county’s matching funds, “100% of that match goes into our emergency fund,” Waid said. “It does not go to putting on the event at all.” e foundation created its community emergency relief fund in late 2021. Soon after came the Boulder res, underscoring the need for a community to have a relief fund, Waid said. e foundation “represents, in essence, the over 320 nonpro ts that exist or have operations in Douglas County,” Waid said. e foundation received its 501(c) (3) designation in 2006, Waid said.
He also said: “We don’t charge a fee or anything like that for the management of this fund. So 100% of the dollars that are donated into our community relief fund … are used in the fund.” e money does not go to overhead or sta salaries, he added.
Waid’s nonpro t plays a broader role than just emergency response.
One of the foundation’s other activities is to “raise money organically as well” and provide quarterly grants to other nonpro ts, Waid said.
It also manages Colorado Gives Day for Douglas County. Last year, the foundation’s nonpro t partners raised over $1.3 million on Colorado Gives Day, according to Waid. Waid, who began serving as the foundation’s executive director in August 2021, was mayor of Parker from 2012 to 2020.
Since December 2021, the foundation has given out 118 grants totaling just under $400,000. at gure doesn’t have to do with the foundation’s emergency fund but, rather, the foundation’s support for the nonpro t community in Douglas County, Waid said.