About
Our Leadership Initiatives
Indian River Community Foundation’s clients have spent a lifetime giving back. Many of the charities that receive these dollars are in fragile financial positions, yet they continue to do more. More to help vulnerable children, struggling families, and fragile seniors. More to promote the arts. More to protect and preserve the environment. All during a period of the largest intergenerational transfer of wealth in American history. The Community Foundation is pursuing the following leadership initiatives to support and sustain a healthy nonprofit sector in our community.
Giving Forward
Giving Forward is a $50 million leadership initiative launched in 2024 encouraging generous people to make charitable gifts to permanent endowment funds today that were originally planned as charitable bequests in the future. These funds will support the following priorities:
- Proven Programs -- $20 million to support and sustain local charities that operate proven programs that meet the community’s most pressing needs.
- Promising Practices -- $10 million to support collaboration between local charities to develop promising practices that fill gaps not currently meeting community needs.
- Indicators and Insights -- $5 million to support data, information, and analysis that promotes more informed and effective local philanthropy.
- Path to Prosperity -- $5 million to support and sustain college readiness, access, persistence, and scholarship programs for Indian River County students from vulnerable populations.
- IRCF Grantmaking -- $5 million to sustain the Community Foundation’s unrestricted discretionary grantmaking.
- IRCF Operations -- $5 million to sustain the Community Foundation’s operations.
Endowment Partners
Endowment Partners helps local charities plan for long-term sustainability. Over 12 months, participants learn about planned giving, investments, and marketing solutions to help establish and grow permanent endowments than can sustain their operations into the future. Current Endowment Partners include the following:
- Alzheimer & Parkinson Association of IRC
- ARC of Indian River County, Inc.
- Ballet Vero Beach, Inc
- Big Brothers Big Sisters of St. Lucie, Indian River, & Okeechobee Counties
- Childcare Resources of Indian River
- Homeless Children's Foundation of Indian River County Inc.
- Indian River County Healthy Start Coalition
- Indian River Golf Foundation Inc
- Indian River Habitat for Humanity, Inc
- Laura (Riding) Jackson Foundation
- Literacy Services of Indian River County
- Mental Health Association in Indian River County, Inc.
- Ocean Research and Conservation Association, Inc.(ORCA)
- Senior Resource Association
- The Hope for Families Center
- United Against Poverty, Inc
- Vero Beach Opera, Inc.
- Vero Beach Rowing, Inc.
- Youth Guidance
- Youth Sailing Foundation of Indian River County