Frequently Asked Questions

Q. What is the Women’s Fund?

A. The Women’s Fund established an endowment in 1998 within the La Crosse Community Foundation. It is a partnership of donors, grantees and volunteers working to support programs for women and girls. The Women’s Fund:

• Fosters an impact on attitudes and actions that benefit women and girls
• Promotes opportunity, health and self-sufficiency for women
• Encourages women and girls to develop as philanthropists

Q. What is an endowment?

A. An endowment lasts forever and allows for your gift to keep on giving…and giving…and giving. An endowment is a fund of money (like a never-ending, always-growing savings account) that is set aside PERMANENTLY. Its assets are invested for the purpose of earning and providing income for generations to come! It is these perpetual earnings, derived from the monies invested in the endowment that allow us to provide annual dollars through grants to non-profit programs. And, of course, when the endowment grows (through your generous gifts), so do the earnings and so do our grants.

Q. What is a named fund?

A. Under the umbrella of the Women’s Fund, donors can create named funds to improve the lives of women and girls through the grants allocated by the Women’s Fund Board. You can start your own named fund with just $1,000. The named fund will begin to generate dividends after it has reached $10,000. This fund can be established over a period of 10 years.

Q. Why target programs for women?

A. Our goal is to increase the financial resources available to programs for women and girls in our region now and in the future. Despite the dramatic advancement of women in recent decades, women are still far more likely than men to be homeless, live in poverty, be unemployed or under-employed, face violence, or live in substandard housing and have inadequate health care. We will work to increase literacy, prevent violence, promote social, educational, physical, and emotional health and well-being; and encourage artistic and personal growth and economic self-sufficiency for women of all ages.

21 million of the 37 million Americans living in poverty are women. More than 4 million of those women are single mothers, heading more than half of all poor American families (Census Bureau, 2006)

Women still earn only 77 cents for every dollar earned by men. For women of color, the gap is even worse – African American women earn $.71 and Latinas $.58 (IWPR and others 2007)

Women are 45% more likely than men to live in poverty (Census Bureau, 2007)

Q. Is the Women’s Fund one-of-a-kind?

A. The Women’s Fund of Greater La Crosse is part of a fast-growing national movement. In recent years, more than 105 women’s funds have been created, representing assets of more than $96 million and grant making of almost $13 million. Currently in Wisconsin, there are Women’s Funds established in Appleton, Fond du Lac, Fox Valley, Green Bay, Madison, Milwaukee and Oshkosh.

Q. How can I support the Women’s Fund?

A. There are many ways to donate.

• Attending events to learn more and to volunteer.
• An on-line gift: To make an on-line donation, click “donate” above, enter the amount you want to donate. You can either sign in to your PayPal account or if you do not have a PayPal account, click the “continue” link which is found on the bottom left-hand side of your screen and fill in your credit card information. All information is private and secure.
• Check: Mail your check to the Women’s Fund of Greater La Crosse, P.O. Box 654, La Crosse, WI 54602-0654. Please indicate if this is an honorary or memorial gift. If you provide the person’s name and address as well as a message you would like to include, we will send a Helping Others Bloom card and how you would like your name signed.
• Gifts of cash: A cash gift is the simplest way to establish a named fund or to add to an existing fund.

You may want to consider giving through:

• Bequests
• Stocks, Bonds and Securities
• Life Insurance
• Charitable Gift Annuities
• Pension Plan Beneficiaries