CFO honors ElDo Community Foundation with Affiliate of the Year award

Contact: Aaron Scott, CFO, ascott@cfozarks.org or 417-864-6199; or Alice Wingo, awingo@cfozarks.org

The Community Foundation of the Ozarks has selected the El Dorado Springs Community Foundation as an Affiliate of the Year, recognizing excellence in leadership among its 53-member affiliate network. The award comes with a $2,000 prize for the EDSCF’s community grantmaking endowment.

In addition to increasing assets by 96% in the 2021 fiscal year, the EDSCF was nominated as one of the El Dorado Springs Chamber of Commerce’s 2021 Organizations of the Year. Celebrating its 20th anniversary, the foundation has grown its assets to more than $1.2 million dollars, with 20 funds now under its umbrella.

A few of those funds were established by the late Jennie Barritt, who was a teacher in Cedar County. During her lifetime, Barritt established two educational scholarships with the EDSCF that she immediately funded. After she died in January, her estate left additional gifts totaling more than $500,000. Those gifts will forever benefit the community she loved and demonstrates the power of planned giving.

The Barton County Community Foundation, Cassville Community Foundation, Marshfield Area Community Foundation and Perry County Community Foundation also were recognized as Affiliates of the Year for 2021.

Recipients were selected using several criteria — asset growth, new funds established, overall grantmaking and new Legacy Society members — along with examples of community leadership and collaboration throughout the 2021 fiscal year that ended June 30. The awards were announced during the 2021 Affiliate Appreciation Conference on Oct. 7.

“All of our regional affiliate foundations work to improve communities across our region, but these five definitely lead the way,” said Alice Wingo, vice president of affiliates for the CFO. “We congratulate the board members and staff of these Affiliate of the Year winners who do so much to strengthen their rural communities.”

Founded in 1973, the Community Foundation of the Ozarks is the region’s largest public charitable foundation serving a network of donors, 53 regional affiliate foundations and nonprofit partners across central and southern Missouri through with assets of $394 million as of June 30.