Ways to Give: Make a Lasting Impact Close to Home

As the year winds down, many of us take time to reflect on what we’re grateful for, and how we can give back. Across northwestern Minnesota and northeastern Wisconsin, generosity is woven into who we are.

At Boreal Waters Community Foundation, we believe that giving should be both personal and powerful. When you give through the Foundation, you’re not just supporting one cause, you’re helping strengthen the entire fabric of our region.

Here are a few ways to make your year-end giving meaningful and lasting:

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1. Give to Community Opportunity Fund

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Our Community Opportunity Fund is the heart of the Foundation’s work, a permanent, flexible endowment that supports our region’s most pressing needs. Since 1982, it’s helped launch new programs, strengthen nonprofits, and respond to unexpected challenges.

When you give to this fund, your donation joins others to create collective power, meeting needs in our three focus areas: Opportunity, Resilience, and Belonging. Together, we can move faster, reach further, and do more good.

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2. Support or Establish a Fund That Reflects Your Values

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A community foundation makes it easy to align your giving with what matters most to you. You can:

• Support an existing fund for an issue you care about—education, the arts, housing, the outdoors, or local nonprofits. ‍
• Start your own fund, with flexible options like:
  
  • Donor Advised Funds – stay personally involved in recommending grants each year.
  • Designated Funds – support a favorite organization long into the future.
  • Scholarship Funds – invest in the next generation.
  • Unrestricted Funds – empower the Foundation to respond to emerging needs as our region changes.

3. Give Smart: Stocks, IRAs and Tax-Savvy Options

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Give in the way that works best for you. Whether by check, online, donor-advised fund, IRA rollover, stock, or through your business — there are many meaningful ways to support the work happening across our region.

• Gifts of appreciated stock can help you avoid capital gains while maximizing your charitable deduction.

• If you’re 70½ or older, a Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD) from your IRA lets you give directly to the Foundation—tax-free—while meeting your required minimum distribution (RMD).

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4. Leave a Legacy Gift

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When you include Boreal Waters Community Foundation in your will, trust, or estate plan, you create a lasting legacy of generosity. Your foresight ensures that the causes you care about will continue to thrive—forever. We’ll honor your intent and steward your gift with care, ensuring your values live on.

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5. Give by December 31

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To be eligible for 2025 tax benefits, donations must be received or postmarked by December 31. If you are mailing a check, please be sure to postdate it no later than December 31, 2025.

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Together, We Create a Stronger Region

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When you give through Boreal Waters Community Foundation, you join a network of people who care deeply about this place we all call home. Your generosity doesn’t just address one need, it strengthens entire communities.

That’s the power of giving through a community foundation: your gift grows, adapts, and keeps working—today, tomorrow, and for generations to come.

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‍We’re here to help. If you’d like to talk through your giving plans, establish a new fund, or explore legacy giving, our team would love to connect. Explore all our ways to give or reach our directly to Jessica Peterson at jessica@borealwaters.org

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