Endowments: A Perfect Match!

You've heard us talk about endowment, but what is it and how does it really work? On this episode, we're taking a deep dive into our Charitable Organization Endowment program with OCCF's Jennifer Meckling, the Kirkpatrick Family Fund matches with Liz Charles and how donors can maximize their impact by giving to organizations participating in the match program with Dr. Joe Leonard. 

Visit occf.org to learn more!

Chapters

• 0:28 Intro
• 1:40 Interview with Jennifer Meckling
• 14:26 Interview with Liz Charles
• 23:16 Interview with Dr. Joe Leonard
• 27:33 Outro

Transcript

Dan 0:28

How many of you listening out there today have heard the word endowment, but you're not quite sure what an endowment is or perhaps how it works? I'm Dan Martel, and I want to welcome you all back to our podcast, Creating Impact Through Giving, brought to you by the Oklahoma City Community Foundation. The Community Foundation has the largest charitable organization endowment program of its kind in the country.

Currently, there are more than 390 nonprofits that have established endowments with the Foundation. An endowment fund can create sustainable support for the nonprofit that use these funds, and they're essential to the work that they do in the community. When a nonprofit establishes a new endowment fund, it may also qualify to participate in something called the Kirkpatrick Family Fund Endowment Matching Grant Program.

So today, we're going to be speaking with Jennifer Mec,kling who is the director of the Charitable Organization Endowment Program with the Community Foundation. Will also be speaking with Liz Charles, who is the senior program officer with the Kirkpatrick Fund And, we'll learn how the Kirkpatrick match actually works.

And finally, we'll be speaking to Dr. Joe Leonard, a longtime donor to the Oklahoma City Community Foundation, who has participated in helping several nonprofits reach their goals through matching funds. So, let's bring in Jennifer Meckling. Jennifer, welcome back to Creating Impact of Giving.

Jennifer 1:44

Thanks, Dan. Thanks for having me. 

Dan 1:45

So, Jennifer, you oversee the Charitable Organization Endowment with the Community Foundation, correct? 

Jennifer 1:50

That's right. 

Dan 1:51

Okay. And it's grown to become the largest endowment program of its kind in the country. 

Jennifer 1:57

That's right, too. 

Dan 1:58

How did that happen? 

Jennifer 1:59

Well, we have a long legacy with this program. Mr. Kirkpatrick, our founder, really believed very strongly in what endowment could do for organizations. And he said about setting up endowments for some of those organizations many years and believed really strongly in helping them grow and inspiring them to grow them themselves. And to this day, the Kirkpatrick Family Fund offers matches to do just that.

So, all those years of inspiring donors to give to endowment, inspiring organizations to talk to their donors about investing in endowment has resulted in what we have today. 

Dan 2:29

That's outstanding. So, for our listeners, I want to talk about the idea of an endowment. So, tell us again, you know, what is an endowment, and how does it work through the Community Foundation?

Jennifer 2:40

So, an endowment fund is a permanent fund here. We never spend the principle of the fund. So, it's a a fund of money that we invest really wisely with a group of community volunteers. And their goal is to grow that fund over the years with great investment performance. Some years are better than others, as we've seen some little volatility over the past couple of years.

Dan 2:58

Sure. Absolutely, yes. 

Jennifer 3:00

But over the long haul, that fund will grow increasingly every year. And then, each year, we calculate an amount of 5% of that fund, and we grant that out to the organization. So, the organization can count on 5% of that fund every single year. And because investment performance traditionally does go in an upward trajectory, the fund will grow incrementally every year. So that 5% distribution will go up every year. All right. And what, I want to talk a little bit about that because I know you all do this kind of a, a cool event at the Oklahoma City Community Foundation for your nonprofit partners who have endowments here.

Dan 3:23

I want to talk a little bit about that later, but I want to jump in really quick and, and ask you, I know you've got more than 360; what’s the number of nonprofits that that do participate in the program? And how did your team get so many of these nonprofits that consider establishing an endowment fund? 

Jennifer 3:48

So, we have about 390 organizations right now that have permanent endowments, and those have grown over the years.

Some of them were started by Mr. Kirkpatrick himself many, many years ago, and others are just getting started this year. And honestly, I don't do a lot of marketing to try to get people to come in here for an endowment fund. But the word gets out of what an incredible amazing development vehicle It is, what a sustainability vehicle it is.

So, people come to us and ask about starting an endowment. Either a donor comes and says, Hey, I'd really like to create a sustainable income stream for this organization. Or an organization decides, Hey, we've got a little bit of a surplus. We'd like to invest that in endowment so that we have some money for the future.

So, day in, and day out, I get phone calls people want to know more about endowment and are interested in starting them. 

Dan 4:34

Outstanding. That is really, really cool. So, I know that you all offer training for nonprofits too. That's a big thing for you guys. 

Jennifer 4:41

It is. 

Dan 4:42

And all of those that that do establish one, I know that you have some training available for. Tell us a little bit about how that training works and how do people find out about them. 

Jennifer 4:51

So that training is for our endowed partners so that they can learn how to grow their fund. They can learn to talk to donors about more strategic ways of giving. For many years, my colleague Joe Carter did a series called The Seeds of Planned Giving, and that was about planting those seeds, those ideas in the minds of donors and in the minds of organizations who could then plant that seed in their donor's minds. 

Dan 5:13

Right.

Jennifer 5:13

About how to grow a fund through planned giving or creative giving. And then, when I came on board here, I noticed that there was a little bit of a gap between that series of planned giving and focusing on endowment. So, we created a second series called Focus on Endowment, and that's taking those ideas that we learn in planned giving and, and really just focusing them on how do we use that to grow the endowment.

And that's become really popular. We do something called Endowment 101 once per quarter, and that's a great way for people just to get the basics in if they're new to their organization. 

Dan 5:44

Sure. 

Jennifer 5:45

They've never had an endowment before, or maybe they're just new to a position within an endowed organization; they can learn a little bit about it. There's a low barrier to entry. We do most of those on Zoom, so it's really easy to sit back and tune in and learn a little bit about endowment. 

Dan 5:58

Outstanding. So, I know that, and this is what I'm talking about. This is kind of fun. So, I know your team does something very exciting every year. You have a disbursement event. How does that work? And kind of tell us a little bit about the excitement that goes on around that event. 

Jennifer 6:12

Yeah, so every year, we calculate that 5% for all of these organizations. And we have one big event in October where we give out the checks, and that's somewhere in the neighborhood of 10, $11 million that goes out the door that day.

So, in previous years, we've had one big event, and everybody comes in, it's all hands on deck. We've got to get a lot of checks out the door and deal with a lot of people, and we have a little bit of a celebration. This past year, you may have noticed that we have a new CEO, and she really wanted the opportunity to talk to people. And a big party with 350 people in attendance is not necessarily the best way to do that. 

So, we broke it into six events over three days. It was also all hands, but a different kind of hands. It was a long stretch for us for that week. 

Dan 6:55

Yes. 

Jennifer 6:55

But we had the opportunity to address the crowd, and then we had the opportunity to have personal one-on-one conversations. Trisha got to meet a lot of those people in person, shake their hands, hear their stories. So, it was every bit as exciting. It was just drawn out over six events over three days, and we had great attendance, we had great feedback on that, and I think that might be our new normal. 

Dan 7:16

That's excellent. You know, and one thing that was cool, if I can recall about that event, you actually had speakers of people that actually were talking about their endowments, how excited they were to have their endowment. So, you're, you've got people talking to their peers about what the endowment does for them and what it could do for them, correct? 

Jennifer 7:34

That's absolutely right. And the best part about that is we were able to choose because we had six events, several organizations, and several nonprofit professionals to talk about that.

So, we were able to offer a huge variety in what those look like. So large organizations, small organizations, new organizations, old organizations, some have small endowments, some have very large endowments. But every one of those got to talk to what it means to have an endowment, what it meant for their organization and what they intend to do with that to leverage it into the future. It was a great story, and it was great to hear in so many different ways. 

Dan 8:05

Very cool. What are some of the things that these folks do with the checks once they receive them? 

Jennifer 8:12

So, that's a great question because they use it in so many different ways. We heard from a lot of organizations, especially during the pandemic, that the endowment actually saved them through that trying time.

Dan 8:22

Wow. 

Jennifer 8:22

Because that was an that was income that they could count on, they knew was coming their way. They didn't have to work hard for it. They knew that it was going to get, you know, hit that budget line for them. So, they felt really comfortable being able to do that. And I think them sharing that kind of a story, especially in some of these sessions that we had this year, other organizations got to hear that and thought, wow, my endowment isn't quite that big that it could support us through a really hard time. Maybe we should work on that and try to get there. So that was inspiring for a lot of people. Some other organizations have an endowment that's a little bit more complex. It's got what we call sub-funds, and those are generally funds that are restricted to a particular purpose. So, in general, most endowment funds are for general operations. An organization gets that check, and they get to spend it on wherever they need it, but occasionally they have a donor, or they have an initiative, and they decide we're going to fund this particular thing with this particular fund. So, every year that check is is that 5% goes out, but it is restricted to a particular purpose for which that was set up.

So, some of those organizations go home with one check, with a whole list of an accounting of what each of those are restricted to. So, they get to be able to put the that particular amount toward that particular use. And it's very exciting for them. It's very exciting for those donors when they set that up because they know that they're doing something that they really care about.

Dan 9:37

Now, do you have do you have nonprofits that prefer to take the check and just reinvest it into their current endowment? 

Jennifer 9:44

Yes, we do. Especially in times like today, where the market is a little volatile. We don't know what's going to happen in the next couple of quarters. And they recognize that sometimes if we don't need that income for this year, we can put it back into the endowment, and the endowment will rebound and and grow back to where it was prior to the downturn that we saw.

Dan 10:01

I gotcha. Okay. So, Jennifer, you have a a fund portal here at OCCF, which is a secure reporting service, and how could a board member or perhaps a staff member of a non-profit take advantage of that particular fund? 

Jennifer 10:14

I love the fund portal. It's such an amazing tool. Now, this came to be available to us when we moved to a new system just a couple of years ago, and it became a much more comprehensive system than what we can offer.

So, an organization could log on much like you would log into your own bank account or something like that online. But unlike just a bank account that gives you an accounting of what's in there, it actually gives organizations an accounting of every gift that's ever been given to their endowment fund.

It also shows them every grant that's ever gone out in that 5% each year. But the beauty of having all those contributions show up in a list is they have a history of people that have shown with their money that they care about endowment, and they care about this organization's endowment. So, they have a long history, especially if they're a long-held fund. They've got a history of many, many years of donors directly into their endowment fund, and they can even click on a donor's name and see every gift that that donor has given to their endowment fund, so it's a comprehensive list. So, it's an amazing development tool for people that are looking, perhaps the development directors looking to see who supports our endowment in a really direct way. That list is in there, and they can find it themselves. 

Dan 11:19

Oh, that is really interesting. Okay. Fantastic. I guess at this point, is there anything else that you can tell us about the advantages of establishing an endowment with the Oklahoma City Community Foundation? 

Jennifer 11:30

Well, I think that we offer a lot more than a lot of our competitors might. We certainly try to be a partner in the community. We want to offer as much training as we can. Now we structure that so that obviously my goal is to grow an endowment. So, a lot of what I talk about is endowment growth. But I think endowment growth comes from being a strong organization. So, we talk about that a lot.

We talk a lot about policies. We talk a lot about personnel. We talk a lot about how to be a strong nonprofit so that you can support an endowment fund so that you can grow that endowment fund and create just an endless supply of income for many, many years. 

Dan 12:07

So, if I'm a nonprofit and, you know, I'm, I'm just kind of starting out. I really want to establish an endowment. I see the advantages and I've heard of this match program. How does that work? 

Jennifer 12:18

Yeah. So, as I mentioned before that Mr. Kirkpatrick, our founder and the founder of the Kirkpatrick Family Fund, believed really, really strongly in incentivizing endowment growth. So, to this day, the Kirkpatrick Family Fund offers an opportunity for an organization to apply for a match.

It's a one-to-three match. The organization sets their own goal, and then once they're approved, they have a year to hit that goal. Once they do hit that goal, the Kirkpatrick Family Fund moves in $1 for every three that they had committed to. That is like an immediate 33% return on their investment. You're not going to get that anyplace else.

Dan 12:49

No. 

Jennifer 12:50

Even the best investment managers are not going to get that. 

Dan 12:53

Absolutely. 

Jennifer 12:54

So that, that wonderful ability to A.) Get that additional income for your organization, but B.) To incentivize people, to give - donors love matching opportunities. It doesn't matter how much; they just love the idea that they can amplify their gift with a gift from somebody else.

Dan 13:07

That's outstanding. 

Jennifer 13:07

So being able to market that opportunity to their donor base that says, Hey, if you give today, it's actually going to be amplified by this gift from the Kirkpatrick Family Fund and is going to go into our endowment forever and support us forever. 

Dan 13:22

Well, I'm excited. Later in this program, we're going to have Dr. Joe Leonard, who's been a long-time donor with the Oklahoma City Community Foundation. 

Jennifer 13:27

Wonderful.

Dan 13:28

And we're going to be talking to Dr. Leonard about his contributions and how excited he gets about helping out some of these non-profits that are looking for a match. 

Jennifer 13:37

Well, I'm excited to hear from Dr. Leonard as well. He supports many of our endowment funds and has just been a great, great partner for us over the years. 

Dan 13:44

Well, Jennifer, once again, thanks for being with us today. Before I let you go, what's the best way for a nonprofit or somebody who wishes to support a nonprofit to get information on the Foundation's endowment program?

Jennifer 13:55

I think the best way would be to call me. 

Dan 13:57

What's your number, Jennifer? 

Jennifer 13:58

(405) 606-2951. 

Dan 14:01

All right. If you have any questions, please feel free to call Jennifer Meckling. She is here with her team to assist you in any way. Endowment is an exciting way to go. Just continues to build a nonprofit organization's resources for many years to come. What a great program you run here, Jennifer, and we appreciate you being on the show again. 

Jennifer 14:21

Thanks, Dan. Thank you so much for having me in and letting me talk about endowment. 

Dan 14:24

Absolutely. Now we want to bring in Liz Charles, the senior program officer with the Kirkpatrick Family Fund. Liz and I will be talking about how the matching program works when a nonprofit is looking to reach a particular goal. Liz, this is your first time on Creating Impact Through Giving. Welcome. 

Liz 14:41

Thank you so much. 

Dan 14:42

Glad you're here. So, let's just dive right in and talk about, you know, how a match works. If a nonprofit has a particular goal, I've got to raise X number of dollars. They meet. How do they apply for a match to the Kirkpatrick Family Fund, and how does that work?

Liz 14:57

Yeah, so endowment growing and ensuring that organizations have long-term sustainability is really a priority long time priority of the Kirkpatrick family. And now, in the present for the Family Fund. So qualified organizations can apply through the Family Fund's grants portal. And it's a three-to-one match.

And so, for every $3 that an organization raises, the Family Fund will contribute $1 to the organization's endowment fund at the Oklahoma City Community Foundation. 

Dan 15:31

How does a nonprofit qualify for one of the matching grants, Liz? So, we're really looking to work with organizations who fall within our areas of interest and within our funding priorities.

Liz 15:35

We fund organizations across central Oklahoma in the areas of arts and humanities, community enhancement, education, health and human services. And you know, we're really just looking to work with those organizations who are, who are looking to engage their donors, their board of directors.  Other prospective donors that they maybe haven't, haven't interacted with in a long time.

Dan 16:05

Sure, yeah. 

Liz 16:06

To increase the organization's resiliency through endowment. 

Dan 16:11

So, I, I'm, I'm going to guess then that through the years, the the way the matching fund has worked has been pretty, pretty much the same that Mr. Kirkpatrick had envisioned. Nothing's really been different about that. 

Liz 16:22

Yeah, no, no major changes. You know, there are times when we want to do something really special with an organization who has received you know, a really maybe an unexpected bequest or a, you know, a really significant donation and they wanted leverage that to increase the, their endowment. We'll work with those organizations to create a special match in those opportunities.

And in the early days, you know, there were some one-to-one matches and incentives for organizations to really prioritize establishing an endowment. Of building an endowment. But yeah, for the most part, it's that three to one match. I will say for the organizations who are looking to establish a new endowment and they want to meet that $40,000 minimum for establishing an endowment fund at OCCF, we waive the three to one match and then turns into a $25,000 contribution from the organization. And then we match that with $15,000 to meet the 40,000. 

Dan 17:22

Wow, okay. That is, that is outstanding news for anybody that's, that's considering. 

Liz 17:26

Makes it a little bit more attainable for sure. 

Dan 17:28

Absolutely. Absolutely. Let's say, you know, I'm, I'm an organization and I've decided, hey, I think in order for me to meet a particular goal, I need to, I, I really think I'm going to need some help with a matching fund from or matching grant from the Kirkpatrick Fund.

Is there a time limit that I need to do? I want to talk a little bit about how much time does an organization have to kind of reach a goal and, and tell me a little bit about how that works. 

Liz 17:54

Sure thing. So, we have four grant cycles a year and organizations can apply for an endowment match in any one of those four grant cycles. That's March, June, September and December. And so, they'll make their way through the letter of inquiry process, the application process, and if their application is approved by our board of trustees, then they will have one year from the date of that approval and that vote to raise their portion of the match.

So, organizations approach this from, you know, a variety of perspectives. A lot of those are a little bit more conservative and they do a lot of the fundraising on the front end before they apply for the match. Just wanting to make sure they will have those funds raised. Others you know, have very strategic asks of particular donors or board members that they're going to engage. And others say, we're just going to go for it. We're going to do this huge annual campaign. We're going to make it a part of our fundraising strategy throughout the year and really weave it in in these really intentional and strategic ways. You know, all of those options apply when it comes to an organization's portion of the match, so... 

Dan 19:00

What's interesting, you know one of the things I heard too, when I was working with the folks over at the Parkinson's Foundation, you know, their board really got behind establishing an endowment and the match, and they got all excited about it and they, next thing you know, they turned around, they had absolutely superseded anything that they had thought about from the beginning, which is terrific.

Liz 19:20

Yeah. I mean, and that really is when we see the most success with organizations we partner with on endowment matching is when its board owned, when the board really understands the importance of this, the value and their role in helping organizations.

Dan 19:34

Right. 

Liz 19:34

They grow and increase their endowment. 

Dan 19:36

So, I know that you know, the Kirkpatrick Family Fund has been doing this for a long time and you've helped a lot of organizations meet a particular goal. What kind of feedback do you receive after an organization has, has met their goal? Do you ever get any kind of feedback like that from organizations?

Liz 19:51

We do, and we love it. We love to be a part of an organization's process and, and kind of seeing all, seeing the progress along the way. So, and we get to celebrate along with them when they meet their goals or when they have unexpected gifts or, you know, surprise gifts or when. Increase or diversify their donor base. That's really what we're looking for. We're looking for an opportunity to leverage the Family Fund match, to incentivize other donors to participate in supporting that organization. 

Dan 20:23

Exactly. 

Liz 20:24

And so, when we hear those stories, it's awesome. And then obviously, anything that the Family Fund can do to continue to support the efforts of the Oklahoma City Community Foundation, everyone, everyone wins. 

Dan 20:33         

So, this is kind of a random question, Liz. So, if an organization is really good about that, how often can they go back to the Kirkpatrick Fund and receive the match? 

Liz 20:43

That's a great question because you would be amazed at how little known this is. We have organizations who come to us year after year after year after year for endowment matching. And the majority of those organizations don't come to us for big, huge contributions. It really is, you know, okay, we're going to raise $15,000 this year and we're going to, you know, apply for $5,000 from the Family Fund, or we have those who come to us for $500 every year, or $1,000, or you know, whatever it is, just.

There, it's, it's demonstrating a commitment to, even if it's a little bit of at a time, increasing that organization's sustainability through prioritizing their endowment. 

Dan 21:21

Well that's excellent. 

Liz 21:23

So, yeah. 

Dan 21:23

Well, our hope that if, if people are out listening today, I mean, you just heard it from Liz Charles. I mean, this is not just a one-time deal if, if you're really serious about growing your endowment also through matching funds, then you have the opportunity to do it more than more than once, and you can do it again and again. That's exciting. Liz, so if an organization is interested in, in raising funds to to meet a certain goal, would they go through like the Oklahoma City Community Foundation first, or would they go through the Kirkpatrick Family Fund? How does that process work? 

Liz 21:53

Well, we try to be as helpful and accessible as possible, but it probably makes the most sense for an organization to reach out to the staff at Oklahoma City Community Foundation if they're interested in establishing a new endowment fund or pursuing a Kirkpatrick Family Fund endowment match for an existing fund.

Either way, you know, the Family Fund staff is also very accessible and happy to answer questions. Jennifer Meckling and I work very closely together to ensure that organizations have the information they need. So, start with Jennifer. Always start with Jennifer cuz she's brilliant. And, and then she will connect the organization with the Family Fund.

Dan 22:30

That's great to know. So, I think all of you that are listening, you've heard a lot about how to meet a particular goal through matching funds through establishing endowments with the OCCF. So, Liz, thanks for being with us today. It was a pleasure having you on the podcast. And again, if you remember of a nonprofit in the Oklahoma City area and you're trying to reach a particular goal, you might just qualify for a match to the Kirkpatrick Family Fund. So, Liz, what's the best way for folks to find more information about their Kirkpatrick matches? 

Liz 22:59

The best way is to find us on our website. That is www.kirkpatrickfamilyfund.org. 

Dan 23:08

Kirkpatrickfamilyfund.org and they'll find your information there as well. 

Liz 23:11

Yes, sir. 

Dan 23:12

Well, thanks again for being on our program.

Liz 23:13

Thank you. 

Dan 23:15

Now I want to bring in Dr. Joe Leonard. Dr. Leonard has participated in helping several nonprofits reach their goal by contributing to the Kirkpatrick match. Dr. Leonard, welcome to the podcast, Creating Impact Through Giving. We are glad you are here, sir. 

Dr. Leonard 23:29

Thank you. It's good to be here. 

Dan 23:30

Yes, sir. So, Dr. Leonard, I know you've been a longtime donor to the Oklahoma City Community Foundation. What is it about that Kirkpatrick match that prompts you to help nonprofits reach their goal? 

Dr. Leonard 23:42

Well, I think the best example I can give you is there's an organization in Edmond that my wife and I, she basically participated in since early seventies. And after I retired, I started working with her some, and a few years ago realized that even though we'd been with that organization for well over 30 years, had never received a single request for money. Got to looking into it. Well, I guess actually it came out the other way. Joe had told me the about the matching fund. We talked about it, and so I, I talked to this organization about it and learned that the reason they had never had to have a cash-raising campaign was that their finance committee watched what they had, and whenever they had extra, they put it into the foundation. And I think that fund is well over a million dollars now.

Dan 24:31

Fantastic.  

Dr. Leonard 24:32

And I thought, what a fantastic idea. And so, we began looking for, for ones that did that and have encouraged it in some organizations I've been involved in. But I think it's just a fantastic way. I mean, I, like I say, I the best of my knowledge that come, that particular organization has never had a fundraising drive.

Dan 24:52

And so, they've reached the goals this through... 

Dr. Leonard 24:54

They've reached the goals. 

Dan 24:54

That's exciting. 

Dr. Leonard 24:56

I mean, they obviously get funds from some way. 

Dan 24:58

Yeah. 

Dr. Leonard 24:58

But they then put them into, into the matching fund. 

Dan 25:02

Fantastic. So, you know, Oklahoma City is so blessed to have so many nonprofits that are doing a lot of essential work here in the community. How important is it to support these kinds of charitable organizations?

Dr. Leonard 25:13

I guess actions speak louder than words. 

Dan 25:16

That's well put. That's from Dr. Leonard himself. That's, that's a, that's, that's exactly right. We have a lot of donors out there that, you know, that really do care about particular, certain, certain causes.

Dr. Leonard 25:28

Oh yeah, 

Dan 25:29

What about you, sir? What what are some of the nonprofits that you and your family care about? 

Dr. Leonard 25:34

Well, the the Skyline has always been a big one for us. 

Dan 25:39

That's a really good organization. 

Dr. Leonard 25:40

But it's, it's always interesting to find out others that we are involved with do have those funds out there. In fact, I used to make just a voluntary contribution to the organization I mentioned earlier, and since finding out how they do it, why I've said. Let's let's just send the money to that rather than sending it to them. 

Dan 26:00

Excellent. You know, there seems to be a stigma out there that only wealthy people, you know, have the means to contribute to particular nonprofits or a cause. In your opinion, don't you think it's just as meaningful for the $50 or $100 donor to support one of their favorite charities? 

Dr. Leonard 26:16

I didn't start out where I am now.

Dan 26:18

Well, again, well said. 

Dr. Leonard 26:20

And I think you decide that something's important and you're going to do it. And you're absolutely right. Yeah. I mean, here's whether it's a dime or $1,000, but something just to get in the habit of doing it. 

Dan 26:32

Absolutely. Dr. Leonard, what kind of feeling do you get when you know an organization had met its financial goals thanks to that Kirkpatrick match, knowing that you've helped contribute somehow?

Dr. Leonard 26:43

Well, it's, it's obviously a good feeling. I don't know how often I ever stop and think about, well, geez, I did it because of what I did. Maybe. At times think, well, without people doing something, they wouldn't make it. But it's obviously a feeling that my wife and I both felt was well worthwhile and made an effort to do it. And we're glad to have the Oklahoma City Foundation available at the point in our lives when we were able to do it. 

Dan 27:09

Excellent. That's really all the questions I have for you today, sir. I appreciate you being on the podcast. You know, it's it takes donors like you, sir, to, you know, to help make the world go round in this community. And there are a lot of nonprofits that need a little extra push, and we really appreciate all the help that you and your family have done for so many organizations here in Oklahoma City. Thank you. 

Dr. Leonard 27:29

Well, it's been my pleasure. 

Dan 27:30

And thanks for being here today. 

Dr. Leonard 27:31

Thank you for asking. 

Dan 27:33

Well, that about wraps it up today. I want to thank all of you for listening. You know, our nonprofit community is vital and provides many essential services to thousands and thousands of individuals every single day. If you're a nonprofit and would like to learn more about establishing an endowment with the Oklahoma City Community Foundation, please reach out to Jennifer Meckling here at the Foundation. She and her team are more than happy to assist you. Or perhaps you're a nonprofit trying to raise some funds and would like to learn more about how the Kirkpatrick match works. We can assist you there too. 

Join us again next month for another edition of Creating Impact Through Giving. We're going to talk about qualified charitable distributions, better known as QCDs. A QCD allows a donor to provide maximum benefit for their favorite charity and reduce their taxable income. Our guests will include Julie Dais and Laura Moon, both of the Oklahoma City Community Foundation. And we're going to dive pretty deep into this topic. Until then, I'm Dan Martel, and we'll see you again on Creating Impact Through Giving.