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OUR MISSION
In Christ, The Catholic Foundation inspires giving and assists donors to provide for the long-term needs of the Diocese of Columbus.
OUR FOUR PILLARS
The Catholic Foundation focuses its funding in four pillars of our Catholic faith: Parish Life, Catholic Education & Faith Formation, Social Services and Vocations.
KEEPING THE FAITH
The Catholic Foundation is the only foundation in the Diocese of Columbus that invests your gifts in alignment with the teachings of the Catholic Church. Our portfolios follow the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops investment policies, and we carefully screen all charitable organizations that we fund to make sure they also follow Catholic teachings.
WHY US
The Catholic Foundation ensures Catholics a way to leave their legacy uniquely aligned with their Catholic values and beliefs. Donors enjoy the satisfaction of knowing that their gift directly supports the Catholic organizations that they choose.
WHO WE SERVE
The Catholic Foundation assists donors in creating a meaningful impact through planned giving and charitable fund management. Additionally, the Foundation works closely with the charitable entities that the donors designate as beneficiaries, as well as with Catholic organizations who apply for grants.
SNAPSHOT
$13,173,961
TOTAL GRANTED
2,366
TOTAL GRANTS
BY PILLAR
$3,965,233
PARISH LIFE
$2,788,994
SOCIAL SERVICES
$1,289,860
VOCATIONS
BY TYPE
$6,260,651
DONOR ADVISED FUND
$4,957,720
ENDOWMENT
$1,160,740
RESPONSIVE GRANT
$226,100
SCHOLARSHIP
$533,750
CERF
$35,000
ST. MARTHA GIVING FUND
$156+ million
Total Grants Since Inception
65 New Funds Opened
BY PILLAR
10
EDUCATION
4
SOCIAL SERVICES
10
PARISH LIFE
45 Support More Than One Pillar
4 Support All Pillars
BY TYPE
46
DONOR ADVISED FUND
18
ENDOWMENT
1
SCHOLARSHIP
GRANTS BY COUNTY
SCHOLARSHIPS
In 2020, 29 students in the Diocese received awards from 24 scholarship funds at The Catholic Foundation totaling over $226,000. Scholarships support promising and deserving students by assisting them with the costs of their education. Donors often establish a scholarship to honor or memorialize friends, teachers, family members or other loved ones. Since 2007, The Catholic Foundation has awarded over $1 million in scholarships empowering over 180 young people to continue their academic and vocational studies. With continued generosity of donors who share this dedication to education, the Foundation will continue to support students as they answer God’s call.
Scholarship funds, such as the T.J. Baesmann Scholarship, serve as a powerful legacy to support and encourage students. This scholarship provides tuition assistance for college to a graduating senior of a Catholic High School in the Diocese of Columbus. The 2020 T.J. Baesmann Scholarship recipient is Andrea Bergman from Bishop Hartley High School.
“I am honored to receive this Catholic scholarship because my faith is important to me. This scholarship allows me to further my Catholic education and faith development. I am currently attending the University of Dayton through summer courses online and will continue my education at UD this fall! Go Flyers!”
Andrea Bergman
Bishop Hartley High School
Dan Kurth, VP of Grants and Community Impact said the scholarship process was a little more difficult this year. “Usually, the scholarship committees deliberate in March. Obviously, the quarantine provided some challenges in the evaluation of the scholarship candidates. However, the committees were flexible and met via Zoom and Skype to make sure that the winners were selected as quickly as possible and the notifications delivered in a timely manner. We are honored to play a small role in impacting the educational life of students within our Diocese.”
To learn more about our Scholarships, visit www.catholic-foundation.org/scholarships or email Dan Kurth at dkurth@catholic-foundation.org.
OUR HISTORY OF GRANTING
1984
The Inception of the The Catholic Foundation
2009
$4,652,827 in funds raised
2012
$5,0252,305 in funds raised
2015
$10,059,391 in funds raised
2020
$13,173,961 in funds raised
HAVE GRANTED
$156 MILLION SINCE 1984
Over the past three decades The Catholic Foundation has worked with generous donors to support and improve our Catholic community. We take great care to invest your funds wisely and in accordance to Catholic values and beliefs, so they grow over time. We are inspired and blessed to steward these funds that support the charitable causes you care about while investing in our Catholic faith.
These grants have been made to thousands of churches, schools, and other nonprofit organizations in the 23-counties of the Diocese of Columbus over
the past 36 years.
CATHOLIC EMERGENCY RELIEF FUND
On Monday, March 9, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine declared a state of emergency due to the coronavirus, COVID-19. The unexpected and unprecedented impact of the coronavirus pandemic was felt by every parish in the Diocese of Columbus and especially by its food pantries. As a result, The Catholic Foundation, in partnership with the Diocese of Columbus, established the Catholic Emergency Response Fund (CERF) and seeded it with $250,000.
This fund provided and flexible assistance to parishes within the Diocese of Columbus, that receive financial requests from parishioners due to the spread of COVID-19. This fund also provides financial assistance to food pantries sponsored by the Diocese of Columbus to purchase food and other much needed supplies. 100% of donations go towards helping Catholic parish families and individuals impacted by COVID-19.
CEO and President, Loren Brown, said “It didn’t take long for us to get together, realize we had to do something, and begin thinking of the best ways to help people impacted by the virus. We quickly had a conversation with Bishop (Robert) Brennan who specifically asked us to focus on food pantries as well as our parishioners.”
As of June 30, 2020, over 145 gifts were made to the fund totaling almost $700,000. Additionally, 53 grants were made to 40 parishes and 13 food pantries totaling over $533,000. Brown said, “What’s amazing is how fast the money came in at the beginning. Within a couple of days, we were at a half-million dollars. We were able to leverage the seed money, and our Catholic community quickly responded.” Many of the Foundation’s Donor Advised Fund holders stepped up and gave money from their funds to help aid in the Foundation’s response. “Many people wanted to help and didn’t know how. This was a very real, effective, and tangible way that donors could help their fellow parishioners and those in need.” said Brown.
To learn more and see how you can still contribute, visit www.catholic-foundation.org/cerf. If you are interested in opening your own Donor Advised Fund please contact Scott Hartman (shartman@catholic-foundation.org) or visit our website (www.catholic-foundation.org/daf)
CERF IMMEDIATE IMPACT
March 9
Ohio Governor Mike DeWine declared a state of emergency
March 13
Catholic Emergency Response Fund created and seeded with $250k from the Foundation
As of June 30
0
Gifts Made to the Fund
$
0
Has Been Given to the Fund (Including Seed Money)
0
Grants Made From The Fund
$
0
Grants Made From The Fund
From the $533k+ in grants made from the fund
13 Food Pantries Received
$
0
40 Parishes Received
$
0
Dominican Sisters of Peace
The Dominican Sisters of Peace are vowed Catholic Sisters who strive to live a life of peace-making wherever they are and in everything they do. They share this commitment with Dominican Associates who are lay women and men dedicated to a Dominican way of life, which is predicated on prayer, community, ministry and study. Together, the Dominican Sisters and the Dominican Associates follow the Gospel and the tradition of the Roman Catholic Church and work to build a more peaceful world through their ministries, their prayer and their way of life.
Helping those discerning God’s call to the religious life is one of the most important ministries for the Sisters. The Sisters established a House of Welcome in 2013 in New Haven Connecticut to host women who have begun the discernment process with the Dominican Sisters of Peace and have been invited to spend a week or two living with the Sisters to experience their daily life in community, prayer, and ministries. These experiences have proven invaluable to discerners because they offer a view of the Sisters’ life from the inside. In 2018, after noticing that more women were expressing interest in religious life, the Sisters opened a second House of Welcome in the Columbus area.
Learn More About The Dominican Sisters of Peace
Nashville native, Annie Killian, is a current canonical novice. She received her bachelor’s and doctorate at Yale University and her master’s at University of Oxford before becoming a candidate in June. Annie said, “Living in the House of Welcome has been a formative experience for me as I begin the adventure of religious life. Our intercultural community witnesses to the unity of the human family. God desires that we may all be one in Christ. Our human family is a global reality. We are called to foster these global connections as we seek to preach the Gospel for our world today.”
As with most businesses, organizations, and ministries, the Dominican Sisters have had their share of challenges when dealing with the pandemic. The main priority has been staying connected with the women who are in discernment. To help them achieve that goal, the Catholic Foundation provided the Dominican Sisters of Peace with a grant for the purchase of technology, including a video camera, television, microphone, and tripod. Sr. Bea Tiboldi, OP, one of the Vocations Ministers, said “Just one example of how we were able to use the grant was for what we call an Immersion Week, which is a concentrated time to focus on the questions women have about becoming a Dominican and includes time for service and prayer. It’s usually a hands-on opportunity to see what the Sisters do. We can’t do that in person because of COVID. However, because of the equipment we were able to purchase from the grant, we were able to do that virtually and ‘zoomed’ with women from all over, including women from Nigeria, Kansas, Kentucky, and Arizona.”
The Sisters have also used the equipment for virtual prayer meetings. Sr. Pat Dual, OP, Director of Formation, says “Prayer is at the heart of our life. Personal prayer is where a woman hears the Holy Spirit talking to her. God needs to be the center of our lives and the deepening of prayer is so important. No matter what path a woman chooses, whether married, religious, or single- prayer is still at the heart of it.”
Prioress, Sr. Patricia Twohill, OP said, “In every age God raises up individuals who are called to serve the Church and one very vibrant way to do that is as a religious Sister. There are any number of individuals who are seriously considering that call and our Church will benefit from that. We are very grateful for the support of The Catholic Foundation as it takes a village- it takes all people in our Catholic community to support those called to religious life.”
ST. JOSEPH CATHEDRAL BACKDOOR MINISTRY
Every day, since the late 1970s, food has been handed out in the alley behind St. Joseph’s Cathedral in downtown Columbus, Ohio. These efforts are part of what is called the Backdoor Ministry and is primarily managed and overseen by Phil Renico, staff member of the Cathedral. The Backdoor Ministry helps feed the homeless and poor with bags of food containing a bottle of water, sandwich, a piece of fruit (either an apple, orange or banana) and a snack. During the winter season they provide knit hats, gloves, and socks. All items are purchased, divided, bagged, and handed out by Phil and other staff.
Backdoor Ministry relies heavily on volunteers and on donations made during Sunday masses to the church poor box. Additionally, the ministry has come to rely on The Catholic Foundation providing a yearly grant to help supplement these costs. Robert J. Kitsmiller, Cathedral Rector and Judicial Vicar and Judge of the Diocesan Tribunal, said “The grant we receive every year typically provides 30-40% of the costs and the rest is made up of private donations. This is incredibly helpful as it allows us to give all day lunch, every day. We have experienced a 7.8% growth in the number of meals provided as compared to previous years. It has been difficult to keep up with this increased demand and cost. We look to The Catholic Foundation for support so that we can continue this very important and essential ministry.
Learn More About St. Joseph Cathedral Backdoor Ministry
It is no surprise that Backdoor Ministry was also affected by the pandemic experienced in 2020 with an influx of individuals requesting food. “In March we had 2,484 people receive bagged lunches and in April there were 3,079. Not only were we seeing our ‘regulars’ we were also seeing a fair amount of new people from further parts of the Columbus area because a lot of soup kitchens shut down and were not bringing people in for hot meals. Since we were providing a bagged lunch we were able to stay open and didn’t need to shut down, while making sure we took the necessary precautions of wearing masks and sanitizing.” said Renico.
Having this grant money, especially since the pandemic has negatively hit the collection poor box, has enabled the Backdoor Ministry to continue serving those most vulnerable and in need in our community. “People are grateful and thankful for the resources being offered” said Kitsmiller.
Backdoor Ministry provides this service between 9:30 – 10:00 a.m. and 4:00 – 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and on weekends 9:30 -10:00 a.m.
SOCIAL SERVICES
0
GRANTS AWARDED
$
0
TOTAL AMOUNT
Blessed Sacrament School
Blessed Sacrament School, Newark, Ohio, is a Catholic, Christ-centered community whose mission is to educate the whole child—body, mind, and soul—in order to form life-long disciples of Christ who love the Truth, practice the Faith, and live virtuous lives. In the 2020 Responsive Grants cycle, The Catholic Foundation gave Blessed Sacrament a $7,800 grant to go towards the opening of a new preschool for the 2020-21 school year. The preschool is a mixed-age classroom of 3 to 5-year olds with a play-based curriculum and faith-based approach and is designed and set up to accommodate 24 students. Principal Joshua Caton said, “The grant allowed us to offset some of the startup costs such as tables, chairs, sensory needs, toys, dramatic play toys, etc. It’s a large and great space that we can really grow into. We didn’t have those things and it would have been a challenge to furnish those items without the help of the Foundation. It’s a dream come true to have a preschool here and we are thrilled to see what the future has in store for us.”
Principal Caton’s vision of beginning a preschool program is exactly what we need in our Diocese at this time in our history.
Dan Kurth, VP of Grants & Community Impact
Learn More About The Blessed Sacrament School
Principal Caton also mentions that a trend of small kindergarten classes recently has left enrollment below 150 students for the first time in several years. “We have also observed several instances where our own parish families or alumni, forced to enroll their children in other preschools without a program here, have not returned to Blessed Sacrament for K - 8 education. By introducing new families to our school and parish community through preschool, and by offering preschool services to both our parishioners and existing school families, we hope to increase kindergarten class sizes, student retention rates, and our overall enrollment.”
During the last school year, 75% of families who visited the school ultimately chose to enroll at Blessed Sacrament, including three families of kindergarten students. Therefore, it is their belief that by inviting new families to experience their joyful, faith-filled community through preschool, they will have a positive effect on enrollment. A preschool can also be the means to invite new families into our Catholic church.
“We are very happy to be able to play a small part in helping Blessed Sacrament School start up their preschool program. Watching little ones learn the Catholic Faith through our schools is one of the greatest sources of joy I have at The Catholic Foundation. Principal Caton’s vision of beginning a preschool program is exactly what we need in our Diocese at this time in our history. We are very excited to see how Blessed Sacrament passes on the flame of our Faith to future generations.” said Dan Kurth, VP of Grants and Community Impact.
Holy Redeemer Church
A little technology can go a long way. At least that is the case for Holy Redeemer Church in Portsmouth, Ohio. In the 2020 Responsive Grants cycle, The Catholic Foundation gave Holy Redeemer a grant to help fund the installation of an automated smart system for the HVAC in the church and office center. The project included the installation of 5 Carrier RTUM controllers, 5 ZS Pro remote room sensors, LCD displays and communication, program controllers for proper operations, the running of communication wire, the set up of i-Vu for Alarm notifications, and on-site training.
The improvements funded by this grant allow the priests and staff to control building temperatures remotely, leading to energy efficiency savings and freeing up time to better serve the parishioners. Father Joe Yokum, Pastor, said “Due to only having two priests covering all four parishes in the consortium, time and energy is precious. These safety and energy efficient capabilities allows us to manage our equipment in all our buildings from anywhere we want. I can control the lighting and alarm system from anywhere – which is very handy when trying to cut down on time and energy costs.”
This a great way to connect with the community and offers parishioners a way to see us in a different light.
Fr. Yokum, Pastor
Learn More About The Holy Redeemer Church
Additionally, the grant included funding to run new tech lines to increase WiFi capability. Now, the church itself has WiFi capability, which enables ministries like the music department to access music online and for the parish to livestream mass and other events. Live streaming has been particularly important during the pandemic, because churches have been closed or have limited in-person access. Live streaming mass has been integral to keeping the parish thriving and connected during these unprecedented times. Additionally, WiFi allows the church to get creative with engaging their parishioners, and the church has introduced a live-streamed Wednesday-afternoon cooking show called “Cooking with Fr. Joe”. “This is a great way to connect with the community and offers parishioners a way to see us in a different light. It’s less formal and it’s a really cool and exciting thing. I also envision this to be a permanent change because live streaming is our future; it’s not going anywhere anytime soon.” said Father Yokum.
Yokum said, “Working with the Foundation was very easy. We are quite a distance from downtown so most communication is through email and phone. The Foundation provides us with opportunities that we wouldn’t be able to find on our own. This smart system alone was almost $25,000 and we received $21,200 from the Foundation - we would have never been able to do that on our own. These projects are necessary for parishes like ours and we have already seen energy cost savings. In three years, it will pay for it itself. We are very grateful for those who give to the Foundation.”
Founders Club
In 1990 the Board of Trustees launched a campaign to fund an endowment to finance the operations of The Catholic Foundation. The following Catholic families fulfilled leadership pledges of $10,000 or more to this initiative. These Founders played a critical role in the Foundation’s mission expansion which now includes unrestricted grant-making.
Asterisks (*) Indicates Deceased Members
St. John Fisher Stewards
Bishop Frederick Campbell identified St. John Fisher as the patron saint of The Catholic Foundation because of his stewardship of endowments. The objective of the St. John Fisher Stewards is to be a volunteer of the parish, school, or ministry - promoting the growth of endowments through collaboration with The Catholic Foundation’s awareness and service initiatives.
professional advisors group
The Catholic Foundation’s Professional Advisors Group (PAG) is comprised of trusted professionals including estate planning lawyers, financial planners, insurance professionals, accountants, funeral directors, and trust officers. There are two levels of PAG membership: Regular and Sustaining.
St. Martha's Giving Circle
The St. Martha Giving Circle is an initiative dedicated to bringing Catholic women together to raise awareness and funds for organizations in the Diocese of Columbus. A giving circle by design, The Marthas leverage a pooled fund to have a greater philanthropic impact on the selected organizations. Throughout the year, The Marthas will gather to learn about organizations and their needs, and decide together which projects to financially support. There will also be opportunities to share ideas, serve with one another, grow deeper in our Catholic faith, socialize, and learn about the ongoing needs in our Diocese. To learn more visit, www.catholic-foundation.org/themarthas
2020 Grants
$
0
Mommies Matter
$
0
St. Lawrence Haven - Society of St. Vincen De Paul
$
0
J.O.I.N
$
0
Christ Child Society
$
0
Cristo Rey High School
$
0
Columbus Early Learning Center
$
0
Joseph's Coat of Columbus
$
0
Damascus Catholic Mission Campus
$
0
Dominican Learning Center
$
0
Heartbeat International
Kyrie Bequest Society
The mission of the Kyrie Bequest Society is to recognize those individuals who have notified The Catholic Foundation of their plan to leave a future gift through a bequest, trust, life insurance policy, retirement plan, or charitable gift annuity through the Foundation. Specific parishes, schools, or organizations may be designated as beneficiaries.
Asterisks (*) Indicates Deceased Members
HOPE ANCHORS THE SOUL
0
NEW FUNDS
The Catholic Foundation offers Catholics a way to leave a legacy uniquely aligned with our values and beliefs. The Foundation invests all funds in accordance with the USCCB guidelines for Catholic Socially Responsible Investments. We are honored to steward your gifts to the following new funds.
0
beneficiaries
Recipients of grants from our Endowment Funds, Donor Advised Funds & Responsive Grant Cycles.
2020 Financials
| 2019 | 2020 | |
|---|---|---|
|
Cash and Cash Equivalents |
$ 7,937,229 |
$ 8,354,688 |
|
AR and Investment Income Receivable |
$ 769,721 |
$ 345,146 |
|
Marketable Securities and Property |
$ 166,325,128 |
$ 153,046,073 |
|
Land, Property and Equip Net |
$ 4,200,121 |
$ 4,147,476 |
|
TOTAL ASSETS |
$ 179,232,199 |
$ 165,893,383 |
|
Accounts & Grants Payable |
$ 470,838 |
$ 535,422 |
|
Charitable Annuities & Trusts Payable |
$ 4,278,167 |
$ 4,653,666 |
|
Long Term Debt |
$ 5,285,679 |
$ 4,458,065 |
|
Agency Funds |
$ 117,598,693 |
$ 107,381,344 |
|
TOTAL LIABILITIES |
$ 127,633,377 |
$ 117,028,497 |
TOTAL NET ASSETS
$ 51,598,822
$ 48,864,886
TOTAL LIABILITIES & ASSETS
$ 179,232,199
$ 165,893,383
Chart by Visualizer
Financial Disclosures
The Foundation of the Catholic Diocese of Columbus (the Foundation) was incorporated in 1984 and organized as an Ohio non-profit corporation. The Foundation’s purpose is to receive gifts and bequests and to dedicate their use primarily for religious, educational and charitable activities in connection with and for the benefit of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Columbus. All authority of the Foundation is vested in and exercised by its Board of Trustees.
Accounting Policies
The financial statements of the Foundation are prepared on the accrual basis of accounting and, accordingly, reflect all significant revenues, expenses, assets, liabilities and net assets of the Foundation. The Foundation is required to report information regarding its financial position and activities according to two classes of net assets: net assets without donor restrictions and net assets with donor restrictions.
Agency Funds
The Foundation is required to record contributions from donors for the benefit of a specified beneficiary as agency funds. The Foundation is the recipient organization that acts as an agent for a beneficiary if it agrees to solicit assets from potential donors specifically for the beneficiary’s use and to distribute those assets or the return from investing those assets to the beneficiary.
Annuities & Charitable Remainder Trusts
The Foundation administers various charitable annuity and remainder trust agreements with donors. The arrangements provide for agreed upon distributions over a designated period of time (usually the designated beneficiary’s lifetime or a term of years). A liability has been recorded equal to the present value of the estimated future obligation. This obligation amount includes the present value of all anticipated payments to the donors based on their life expectancy or a term of years. The Foundation revalues this liability annually.
Investment Pools
The Foundation utilizes common investment pools to manage most of its investments. The earnings from investments (interest and dividends) as well as investment gains and losses of the pools are allocated to the individual fund according to its percentage of ownership of the investment pool.
Distribution Policy
The Foundation’s distribution policy is to distribute an amount up to 5% of the average market value over 12 rolling quarters.
Tax Status
The Foundation is a publicly supported charitable organization that is exempt from federal and state taxes under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.
Audited Financial Statements
Audited financial statements are available upon request.
The Foundation Prayer
Heavenly Father, giver of all good things we praise and we thank you for your many gifts to us, especially the gift of new life that we have through your Son, Jesus Christ. We ask you, through the power of the Holy Spirit, to continue to stir up in us lively sentiments of gratitude, and enlighten our hearts and minds that we may share your many benefits to us with all those in any need. We pray this through the same Christ, our Lord. Amen.
Bishop Frederick F. Campbell, D.D., PH.D.
