March 2022
Supporting Mississippi - For Good, Forever

With the end of our fiscal year approaching March 31, we’re celebrating our birthday - March 18, 1994! That year gas was $1.09 a gallon, and a first-class stamp was $0.29. It's hard to believe, considering where we are now! We sang with Mariah Carey about our "Hero," and did it “All for Love” with Sting, Bryan Adams and Rod Stewart. We met The Lion King and Forrest Gump. And everyone was reading - and fascinated by – “Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil.” John Grisham's best-seller was “The Chamber.”
 
This year's Grisham hit is “The Boys from Biloxi.” And the Community Foundation for Mississippi has built its assets under influence from $250,000 in our first year to $80 million. We have increased annual impact through grants from $12,800 in 1995 to $6.4 million so far this fiscal year. Since our beginnings, we've made more than $77.5 million of impact through grants to our communities. If you're reading this, you've been a part of that thrilling story.
 
This year, I will highlight that we have helped raise more than $600,000 for relief for the capital city’s water crisis. These donations came from all over America – from $10 to $25,000, people and companies gave. We have been at the table and on the ground as interventions and solutions have been designed to provide access for everyone to clean, safe drinking water. 
 
It’s a privilege for us to help, and our entire staff has mobilized to bring awareness and dollars to the fight. To give you an idea of how our team works together, Sophie McNeil Wolf created numerous social media posts and newsletters, and designed and maintained a critically important information page that kept people updated on where to find water and other assistance. Ken Wiandt worked with many donors and processed thousands in donations, and with the help of Sandy Quinn, sent out timely tax receipts and thank you notes. Melody Moody Thortis created impact reports and designed a tiered relief, response and recovery plan for deploying these dollars – and she worked with Jane Alexander to write grant applications and create funds to disburse the gifts we received from large foundations. Cynthia Buchanan and Theresa Erickson fielded dozens of phone calls and met with countless business people, professional advisors and individuals to help shepherd their dollars toward essential needs and services.
 
All of this effort was in addition to the regular business of the Community Foundation for Mississippi -- helping connect donors with causes they care about.
 
There is a cost to doing business. As one of our circle of friends, we hope you will be willing and able to help us cover some of those costs with your annual gift. We are dedicated to improving the quality of life for all Mississippians and need your help to do it.
 
We are grateful for your support! Your gift ensures we can continue to make a difference in the lives of all Mississippians and build stronger, more vibrant communities for us all.

Jane Alexander
President & CEO
Community Foundation for Mississippi
How To Help: Mississippi Tornado Damage
An aerial view of destroyed homes in Rolling Fork, Miss., on Saturday. (Cheney Orr/Reuters)
Devastating storms and at least one large tornado ripped through rural Mississippi on Friday night, leaving at least 25 people dead, dozens injured and first responders racing against time to rescue people from the rubble. The tornado’s death toll now ranks the highest in Mississippi this century and the worst in over 50 years. In addition to Rolling Fork, the towns of Silver City, Black Hawk, Winona, and Amory suffered extensive damage.

Our sister community foundation - Community Foundation of Washington County - has been “boots on the ground” helping with long-term disaster recovery efforts in Washington, Sharkey, Issaquena and Humphreys counties since 2016. The recent storms in the Delta will leave a long-lasting impact in many of these counties.

CFWC's South Delta Disaster Relief Fund ensures relief and recovery money stays local.

Do you have a donor-advised fund at CFM? You can make a grant request through our donor portal by searching "Community Foundation of Washington County" as a grantee. Add Disaster Relief Fund in the description line and we'll do the rest!
Methodist Senior Services Endowment Funds at CFM to Support Mississippi Residents
It’s a fact that charitable donors prefer to give to those causes closest to home to improve the lives of those in their own local area. To help residents in Yazoo City and Raymond, Methodist Senior Services (MSS) recently created two new endowment funds at the Community Foundation for Mississippi that will allow donors to give directly to help senior residents at its local senior communities.

These funds – one for Riggs Manor in Raymond and Martha Coker Green House Homes in Yazoo City – go into an interest-bearing account, and the proceeds help cover the costs for residents who have outlived their funds through no fault of their own.
Scholarship Opportunity: JXN Water Scholarship
Do you know a Jackson Public Schools high school senior interested in pursuing a STEM degree (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) or discipline and will be attending Hinds Community College in the fall? The application for the JXN Water Scholarship at the Community Foundation for Mississippi is now open!

Four $2,500 scholarships will be awarded for one academic year, but may be renewed for additional semesters. The deadline to submit applications is April 12, 2023.
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