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Once $20,000 has been received in new donations to the Thames Talbot Land Trust Fund, a fund within London Community Foundation, it will be matched with $20,000 from Community Foundations of Canada, a national organization of which London Community Foundation is a member.
Since its inception in 2000, Thames Talbot Land Trust has had 8 tracts of environmentally significant land donated by private landowners, including Tiedje Woods, Blain Farm, McTavish Tract, Meadowlily Nature Preserve, Eberhardt Easement, Newport Forest, Joany’s Woods, and Skunk’s Misery. The Trust’s geographic area of focus includes the London / Middlesex and Elgin County regions and their contingent watersheds.
Donate to the Thames Talbot Trust Fund online or call us to make a donation by credit card, cash or cheque.
Your donation at work: Plan a site visit and see what your donation is being used for.
London Community Endowment Back in Black
Finally, a bit of good news for local groups who rely on endowment funds for financial help.
London Community Foundation has posted positive investment returns over the first two quarters of 2009 (Jan 1 to Jun 30) of 9.9 percent.
According to Foundation Director of Finance Andrew Chunilall, last year’s calendar year return was negative 15.4 percent.
Chunilall is pleased with the recent positive return but cautions that it is still too early to predict what the rest of 2009 is going to do.
“If we have negative returns in the third and fourth quarter, our ability to grant could still be affected. Most important to the Foundation is that we maximize grants without jeopardizing long-term granting capacity.”
Prior to last year’s economic turmoil, the Foundation was providing a 4.5 percent distribution on endowment funds. Today, what the distribution rate will be for next year is uncertain, as it’s up to the last half of the calendar year to tell the story. It seems unlikely to be as high as 4.5 percent.
“I don’t know for sure if we will go right back to 4.5 percent distribution in 2010. We want to be cautious and build a bit of reserve so we can continue to grant in not so good times. Our goal is to avoid dipping into capital.”
Overall, Chunilall remains confident in the Foundation’s investment strategy.
“We’ve recently finished an extensive, critical review of our investment policy and remain committed to our conservative and disciplined approach.”
23 registered charities have endowment funds managed by London Community Foundation include with a combined worth of $7.5 million.
The charities with funds include: Amabile Choirs, Big Brothers Big Sisters of London & Area, Brain Tumour Foundation, Canadian Medical Hall of Fame, Community Care Access Centre, Childreach, Conservatory Canada, The Daily Bread, Elgin Children’s Foundation, Fanshawe Pioneer Village, Grand Theatre, United Way of London and Middlesex, London Humane Society, Children’s Museum, Orchestra London, Reforest London, SARI, St. Aidan’s Anglican Church, St. Paul’s Cathedral, Thames Talbot Land Trust, Urban League of London, and Women’s Community House.