Wayne County Foundation receives $1.5 million grant from Lilly Endowment's GIFT VIII initiative
RICHMOND, Ind. — The Wayne County Foundation is in the eighth phase of Lilly Endowment Inc.'s "Giving Indiana Funds for Tomorrow" initiative.
In a press release published Friday, March 22, the foundation announced it has received a matching fund grant totaling $1.5 million.
The release states that the funds from this portion of the grant will grow the foundation's Unrestricted Grantmaking Fund, which allows flexibility in allocating resources where they are needed most or will have the greatest impact.
Rebecca Gilliam, Wayne County Foundation's executive director, said, “We are so pleased to have this opportunity. The Wayne County Foundation has a 45-year history of working with donors that care about our community to provide resources to ensure individuals and organizations thrive. The matching gift from Lilly Endowment coupled with local gifts will increase the amount of grant funding we have available each year."
In the eighth phase, Lilly Endowment has awarded matching fund grants totaling $133.8 million to community foundations across all 92 of Indiana's counties, and qualifying matching funds donated to support the community foundation’s unrestricted endowment will be eligible for a $2(grantor)-to-$1(grantee) match from Lilly Endowment, the release adds.
The phase was launched last year as a way to allow the foundations to promote long-term viability, further strengthen their abilities to lead, encourage board engagement and support and develop strategic efforts to enhance quality of life in their communities.
More information about the phase can be found on the Wayne County Foundation website.
Evan Weaver is a news and sports reporter at The Palladium-Item. Contact him on X (@evan_weaver7) or email at eweaver@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Richmond Palladium-Item: Wayne County Foundation gifted million dollar grant from Lilly Endowment
