The Community Impact Fund

YOU ARE A CHANGE-MAKER.  YOU BELIEVE IN OUR COMMUNITIES, AND YOU WANT TO MAKE THEM BETTER.  WE FEEL THE SAME WAY. 

As your Community Foundation, we spend every day working to improve the lives of all who live in and visit northeast Michigan. The Community Impact Fund at the Community Foundation for Northeast Michigan (CFNEM), built from donations from hundreds of people who care about our communities, allows your gift to do the most good, sustaining and building a vibrant region.

As its name implies, the Community Impact Fund is one of the most impactful, and therefore important funds held at the Community Foundation for Northeast Michigan. It allows us the unique opportunity and flexibility to meet the needs of our communities (Alcona, Alpena, Montmorency and Presque Isle Counties) as they change and evolve year after year. Over $170,000 is awarded annually from this fund through our Community Impact Grant program and the unrestricted funds established by others that support this grantmaking. As the Community Impact Fund grows through additional donations and investment income, its grants will increase as well.

At CFNEM, we believe whole-heartedly in the power of endowment as the best way to provide much needed funding in support of our communities for the needs of today, tomorrow and for generations to come. Years from now, this fund will be supporting needs in our communities we can't even imagine today. Though there's no crystal ball to tell us what those needs will be, the Community Impact Fund gives us the promise that on the sunniest and rainiest days of the future, there will be funds to make sure northeast Michigan is a great place to live, work and play for all of our residents and visitors!

Why give an unrestricted gift?
Unrestricted gifts are crucial for community foundations because they provide the flexibility to respond to the most pressing and evolving needs of the community. Unlike restricted funds, which must be used for specific programs or initiatives designated by the donor, unrestricted gifts allow us to allocate resources where they are needed most, whether for emerging crises, innovative projects, or long-term strategic priorities. With an unrestricted gift, you provide your community with:

Flexibility to Address Changing Needs - Community needs evolve over time due to economic shifts, social challenges, or unexpected crises (e.g., natural disasters or pandemics). Unrestricted funds empower the Community Foundation to pivot and allocate resources where they will have the greatest impact.
Empowering Local Expertise - We know northeast Michigan well and have deep knowledge of local issues and priorities. Unrestricted gifts allow the Foundation's staff and board to apply their expertise to direct funding where it will have the most meaningful impact.
Long-Term Community Impact - By allowing funds to be used where they are most needed over time, unrestricted gifts contribute to the Foundation’s ability to remain a stable and effective force for community development for years to come.