Our 2019 Annual Report is published! At a time when more and more experiences are virtual ones, we decided not to print a large batch of reports, but instead, to publish and share an historic year in our Community Foundation with you online.
The main reason: there were just too many donors to print – to do so would have nearly doubled the size of our Annual Report! A record 6,000 donors from around the country and across the globe contributed to our Disaster Relief Fund after Hurricane Dorian. That disaster was unlike anything our community had seen, since the Community Foundation was formed, nearly forty years ago. Daniel Pullen’s photos, heart-warming stories, and a complete list of disaster donors all are included in this year’s report, in addition to other important benchmarks.
There were four new scholarship funds created in 2019, to honor people who worked hard, got ahead, and who inspired others to achieve more and to always think and act generously. Thirty 2019 graduating seniors and nineteen college students received $192,000 in scholarships in 2019, from 55 scholarship funds held in trust at the Community Foundation. Each scholarship represents a student who is preparing to go out into the world to live their dreams and reach their goals.
There are six new funds, created in 2019 by big-hearted donors who wanted to leave this Outer Banks a better place. Five of these are “endowed,” meaning they have been placed in trust so they will aid the community for many generations into the future, finding solutions to pressing needs and supporting promising opportunities we can only dream of today.
The Community Foundation’s story—the one you’ll see in our 2019 Annual Report—is really many stories, about thousands of donors with different interests, different passions, and different stories. Some want to ensure our children have opportunities for bright futures. Some want to use our expertise to create funds to support a specific charity, alma mater, or park. Others have broader interests and want to apply their donations to address larger needs. Still others want to give back to a place that has given them so much, and help the Outer Banks in general, with a forever gift to the community.
It is our honor at the Outer Banks Community Foundation to connect people who care with the causes, great and small, that matter most to them. We ensure their legacies are honored, stewarded, and do the most good.
We hope you enjoy reading the good YOU helped create in 2019. And we hope you’re thinking about the kind of mark you are making, and the lives you are touching, through your philanthropy.
It’s a tremendous honor to work with you in creating a better Outer Banks for everyone.
