Establish A Fund

The Power to Use Our Experience

We manage more than 360 funds for people who share a passion for giving and a deep commitment to making our community better. Professional staff will assist you and your advisors in creating a pan that fulfills your philanthropic and finance goals. Whether it’s support a favorite charitable program or teaching your children about philanthropy, we can provide advice, resources, and options.

By opening a fund at The Luzerne Foundation, you can support the charitable causes you care about in Northeastern Pennsylvania.

Establishing a fund is easy to do. Simply contact us for an application form and complete and sign the fund agreement. You may fund your account with a gift of cash, securities, or other assets. Check with us if you have unique or special assets that may be donated in a tax-efficient way. Once your fund is established, you are ready to begin giving! Simply contact us with your annual recommendations of how your funds should be distributed. We seek to honor your wishes to help support the organizations and charitable causes you love.

We offer a variety of fund type options. We will help you establish the fund that are right for your financial situations, lifestyles, interests, and goals. Browse the fund types below to learn more or contact us today to discuss which is the best for you and your needs.

Choose the Charitable Fund That is Right For You

Donor-Advised Funds

Allows donors to recommend grants to specific nonprofit organizations in the community, throughout the United States and other parts of the world.
The original donor may determine what the purpose of the fund will be after the donor’s death, or may appoint future advisors who will advise on its distributions annually.

Scholarship Funds

Benefit students locally and throughout the United States.
Elementary, high school, college, graduate or technical school students.
Donors may choose the type of assistance they would like to provide, i.e. tuition, the purchase of school related equipment and supplies, etc.

Designated Funds

Allow donors to specify eligible, tax-exempt nonprofit organization(s) to receive annual grants in perpetuity.
Should the organization(s) cease to exist after the donor’s death, The Foundation will honor the donor’s original intent by making grants to an existing organization with the same mission or purpose.

Organizational Endowment Funds

Permanent endowments established by local nonprofit organizations and their donors provide ongoing support for that organization’s programs.

Field of Interest Funds

Foundation staff determine use of these funds per the donor’s named areas of interest. Examples may include arts, education, economic development and animals, to name a few.
Specific charities would not be named, but all grants from the fund would be directed toward programs in the region that address the field of the donor’s interest, unless otherwise specified.

Supporting Organization

Supporting organizations are an option for philanthropists making initial gifts of $2 million or more.

Unrestricted Grantmaking

Donors may choose to have their financial gift placed in The Luzerne Foundation’s unrestricted grant-making program.
Foundation staff determines use of these funds based on three funding categories: self-sufficient individuals and families, healthy communities and a vibrant democracy.
We strive to match our donors’ philanthropic goals with our community’s most pressing charitable needs.

Medical Research Funds

Permanent endowments established by donors support investigation into the cause and cure of a variety of diseases and health conditions.

Benefits of Creating a Fund Through The Luzerne Foundation

Flexibility

Donors choose a wide range of fund types, from an unrestricted fund, to a donor-advised fund, to a scholarship fund.

Ease of Administration

We handle all reporting, audits and necessary paperwork so our donors focus on fulfilling and growing their philanthropy.

Personalized Services

We take service seriously. As a donor, you will be assigned a representative who will act as your liaison to answer all of your questions and provide you with customized support based on your needs and interests.

Donor Resources

Through educational events and site visits, donors learn more about the needs of the community and how to be more actively engaged in their philanthropy.

Access to Grant-Making Expertise

Our professional grant-making staff is available to share knowledge of community needs and to help donors decide where to invest their charitable dollars to achieve the greatest impact. We also can arrange a site visit(s) to area nonprofits of interest to donors.

Financial Reports

The Foundation provides each donor with fund statements and investment summaries, showing the balance of their fund, amounts available for grant-making, details on gifts and grants, and investment allocations and returns.

Online Services

“My Luzerne Foundation” is an exclusive online service that puts giving at your fingertips. Make grant recommendations, see the market value of your fund, check on what is available for grant-making and more.

Fund Expenses

Administrative Fees

The Luzerne Foundation, through careful management and through use of volunteers, keeps expenses low while providing high-quality services to donors and grantees. Each of The Luzerne Foundation funds pays a proportionate share of administrative costs of the Foundation. This fee is deducted in quarterly installments from the fund’s principal balance. You will find this deduction on your spring and fall fund financial statements.

Investment Costs

The Luzerne Foundation allocates costs associated with investment management proportionally to the individual funds included in the investment pool. Costs include fees paid for professional management, independent investment consulting fees and legal fees associated with the investment program.

Fees of individual managers vary depending on the type of assets being managed (e.g., management fees for fixed-income investments are typically lower than fees for equity investments) and the size of the portfolio managed. Total investment costs fluctuate depending on how assets are allocated among managers and among investment categories. The Luzerne Foundation’s investment returns are stated net of investment management costs.

The Future of Your Fund

Your Legacy

Continuing to honor your charitable wishes is critical to us. We will track your grantmaking history and use this as a road map for future giving, should you no longer be able to make recommendations. The nonprofit organizations and charitable interests you cared about most during your lifetime will benefit from your legacy in perpetuity. If at any time you would like to review your grantmaking activity, we can prepare a report to suit your needs.

Successor Advisors

When you created your fund, you may have named a relative or friend to make grant recommendations on your behalf when you are no longer able to do so. The Luzerne Foundation will meet with these individuals and will provide them with the history of your charitable giving and assist them in making grant recommendations based on the guidance you provided during your lifetime.

Other Ways to Give

Administrative Fund

Gifts of any size can be made to The Luzerne Foundation’s Administrative Fund. This fund enables us to promote, develop and increase philanthropy in every corner of Luzerne County. It helps us provide our donors with services that meet their needs, from research, to visits with nonprofits, donor events and workshops.

The Fund of Luzerne County

This unrestricted fund is open to donations of any size. Through a competitive process, the Fund for Luzerne County provides grants to nonprofit organizations to address current needs. Because the fund is unrestricted, it allows the Foundation to flexibly address major issues that have far-reaching impact throughout Luzerne County.

The Luzerne Foundation Field of Interest Funds

If you are not ready to create your own fund, you may give to one of our Field of Interest Funds. These funds support seven key areas that together help create a healthy and sustainable community: Social Services, Education and Scholarships, Arts and Culture, Neighborhoods and Community Development, Youth Issues, Historic Preservation and the Environment and Health and Wellness.