About The Salem Rotary Foundation
Members of the Rotary Club of Salem established the Salem Rotary Education Foundation (SRF) as a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt not profit organization in 1969. The purpose of the Foundation is to benefit the health, education, and general welfare, principally of young people, in the Salem area. Over time the word education was dropped from our name, and we added a purpose to the bylaws to allow for much broader charitable activities by the Foundation.
In early years the focus was on scholarships and projects at local schools. Gradually the foundation grew and started giving annual grants. Since 2010 the foundation has budgeted five percent of the average of the previous four year’s ending balances for grants. The Club’s Good Works Committee chooses a large project, and multiple small projects to fund. The Club and Foundation Boards of Directors provides oversight.
In 2010, the Foundation Board set a goal to grow the foundation to $1 million by 2020, which would bring the grants budget to $50,000 shortly thereafter. This goal was achieved a year early. At about this time the Club committed to our Riverfront Park Gerry Frank | Salem Rotary Amphitheater project and used our foundation as the charitable entity to raise over $3 million dollars for this project celebrating the centennial of our club’s founding in 2020.
The Rotary Club of Salem’s other charitable good works are managed through the Foundation. These include Literacy Grants, exchange students, Rotary Youth Leadership Awards, World Community Service, and much more.
The Club and the Foundation raise money with donations large and small, our bellringer program, an annual Good Works fundraiser, and, increasingly important, earnings on our investment funds.
We recognize our donors with our SRF Circle program.
Salem Rotary Foundation Board of Directors
Rus McCracken, President
Tim Nissen, Secretary/Treasurer
Jayne Downing, Past President
Jill Munger
Doug Parham
Barry Nelson
Chane Griggs
The Foundation meets on the third Wednesday of most months, 3:30 pm to 5:00 pm, usually at Capital Financial Planners, 1640 Liberty Street SE. Club members are welcome to attend.
Donations
Donations can be made with credit card or PayPal by clicking here, or by contacting Tim Nissen. Those who wish to make a regular, periodic gift to the foundation can do so in two different ways.
Credit card charge – the club treasurer will take your credit card information and charge the card the amount you want on the timeline you choose.
Checking account – you can work with your financial institution’s “bill pay” program to transmit a gift to the foundation on the timeline you choose.
Salem Rotary Foundation Bylaws
Click here to read the SRF Bylaws.
Contact
Tim Nissen, Secretary/Treasurer
PO Box 3981, Salem, OR, 97302
salemrotaryfoundation@gmail.com
