There is no higher religion than human service. To work for the common good is the greatest creed.
Woodrow T Wilson

1. Is it the TRUTH?
2. Is it FAIR to all concerned?
3. Will it build GOODWILL and BETTER FRIENDSHIPS?
4. Will it be BENEFICIAL to all concerned?

We Rotarians understand that we are fortunate to live in a pleasant and relatively prosperous communities such as Swarthmore, Rose Valley, Wallingford, and nearby towns. We also understand that many residents of Delaware County are not as fortunate as we are. They need assistance. Perhaps we would like to help these other residents but don’t know what to do or how to get started. Monika Collins said she can provide guidance. Monika is Vice President for Advancement at the Foundation for Delaware County (FDC).
The focus of Monika’s talk was on how FDC can help us do charitable giving. She said the first step in the process is self-discovery. She would ask the questions: what are your passions? Are there topics or issues that you hear or read about in which you are interested? Do you want to focus on one area or many? Do you want to have an immediate impact or long-term? Monika and her staff would be pleased to assist us in the self-discovery process.
Why work with FDC? Monika explained that the FDC staff has local knowledge of Delaware County’s needs and resources. She and her staff can provide personal service to assist our determining what we want to do. The FDC is very adaptable. Monika gave the example of how the FDC responded quickly to the COVIID-19 pandemiv by donating personal protective equipment, food, and financial assistance to those affected by COVID and the shutdown. Another value of FDC is that it works with non-profit groups to help them get organized and obtain financial assistance. Finally, there are many ways that we can do charitable giving by working with FDC.
Here are FDC’s current priority areas and some programs they are running:

• Public health – they have organized a program to have nurses visit first time mothers for two years.
• Racial equity
• Housing support – they find and pay for housing for families in need.
• Food security – they administer the WIC program to provide food to mothers and young children.
• Crisis response – COVID-19 response.
• Strengthening nonprofits – Center for Nonprofit Excellence helps nonprofits organize and raise money.

While FDC is a worthy recipient of charitable giving, it can also act as a clearing house of our giving in general. Monika said her staff can arrange for distribution of your contributions to a place and at a time of your choosing. For example, FDC can arrange for annual donations to designated charities.

The following, from the Foundation for Delaware County website, provides some background information about the formation of the Foundation for Delaware County.
“When Prospect Medical Holdings Inc. acquired Crozer-Keystone in 2016, the health system was no longer considered a nonprofit organization, and federal law required that the nonprofit assets of the original entity be set aside in a fully separate and independent charity. This paved the way for our opening as the largest community foundation in Delaware County on July 1, 2016.
Since then, the foundation has awarded more than $9 million in grants, scholarships, and charitable support. Additionally, our community health programs have provided direct supportive services for more than 10,000 clients each year.”
It should be noted that the President, Foundation for Delaware County, is Swarthmore Rotarian Frances Sheehan, shown here.