Helping children in 7 counties
Today, more than 700 children from 533 families have had the opportunity to attend preschool thanks to Dan and Jill's support. CCN supported five counties when the Francis family began granting to it; now the nonprofit organization helps families in seven counties throughout southeastern Michigan.
The Francis family credits their donor-advised fund with giving them the time to learn as much as possible about the effects of early learning before dedicating their charitable efforts to a particular organization or cause. Through the tax benefits of donating long-term appreciated securities and investment growth over the past 10 years, they've been able to provide about $170,000 more in support to CCN than they could have otherwise. That's helped them assist 79 more children.
Having more impact over time
"We didn't want to do one big gift and walk away," Dan said. "We wanted to find the area where our money could have the greatest impact over time. There's just no question that our Giving Account has allowed us to do more good than we could have without it." That plan is good for the organization they support, too, with a new grant recommendation each quarter providing Child Care Network with funds to help area families.
Dan said he knows that grants to early learning "is money well spent," citing research that shows the profound effects that preschool has on children from disadvantaged families in particular, raising long-term academic performance and earning power while lowering truancy and crime rates. "Providing early education for kids is one of our country’s major social problems," he said.
Dan and Jill were able to help 79 more kids attend preschool because they use a donor-advised fund than they could have without one. Could a donor-advised fund help you to give more?
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