Working to connect people with the causes that matter since 2002
The Community Foundation of Northwest Mississippi is improving and changing lives for residents in 12 counties. It was established in 2002 through a visionary grant from the Maddox Foundation with a clear mission to connect people who care with causes that matter.
“While our offices are in DeSoto County and Coahoma County, the goal from day one was to create a regional philanthropic engine that served all of Northwest Mississippi. Leaders of our 12 counties recognized the need for a trusted, permanent charitable resource, one that could help keep wealth, opportunity, and hope at home,” said President, Keith Fulcher. “Today, that original vision guides everything we do and has allowed us to reach $53 million in assets making sure local generosity stays at home strengthening schools, children, families, and entire communities.”
The Foundation serves Bolivar, Coahoma, DeSoto, Leflore, Marshall, Panola, Quitman, Sunflower, Tallahatchie, Tate, Tunica, and Yalobusha counties. “Serving 12 counties brings both complexity and tremendous opportunity,” said Fulcher. “Our region includes some of Mississippi’s most rapidly growing suburban communities, as well as deeply rural counties with longstanding economic challenges. Yet, regardless of population or geography, every county has people who care. Our job is to connect them with the causes that matter in their communities. Eighty-eight percent of grants made through the Foundation are designated to nonprofits in our 12 counties.”
The unifying work is fueled by a commitment to three priorities:
(1) Returning a meaningful portion of the coming transfer of wealth back to local communities.
(2) Addressing the social determinants of health because issues such as education, food access, access to quality healthcare, stable housing, and economic opportunity look different in each county, but they affect every family.
(3) Creating permanent endowments that support the work of the Foundation and its partner nonprofits in perpetuity. The Foundation presently has $37 million in permanent endowments that is professionally managed.
“This regional diversity is exactly why a community foundation model works. We can meet people where they are and customize solutions for each county’s unique needs thanks to charitable donations and to our permanent endowment,” said Fulcher.
He explained that Donor Advised Funds are the charitable vehicles many families and individuals choose when they want flexibility and impact without the administrative burdens of a private foundation. Donors make a tax-deductible gift and then recommend grants over time to the charities they care about locally or nationally. These funds allow donors to support their home communities for generations. Many donors use them as part of their estate plans to ensure that a portion of their assets stay in the region after they’re gone.
According to Fulcher, Donor Advised Funds allow the donor to:
• Make a gift now.
• Receive immediate tax benefits.
• Recommend grants to charities over time.
Involve thier children or grandchildren.
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• Build a multi-generational legacy of Mississippi philanthropy.
“Our competitive grants focus on improving the social determinants of health in Northwest Mississippi, because those factors—education, food security, health access, economic stability, and safe environments—shape long-term outcomes for every child and family,” he said. “Every summer, we open the application portal for our competitive grants focused on key areas of need:
• Early childhood education.
• Future of Northwest Mississippi.
• Placed-based Education and Civic Entrepreneurship.
• Technology in education.
These grants ensure philanthropic dollars support programs that strengthen Mississippi’s future and allow us to direct philanthropic resources toward proven, high-impact nonprofit programs across all 12 counties,” he said.
The Foundation currently manages 314 donor-established funds. Each year, grants are made to well over a hundred charities. “Over our history, that number reaches into the thousands. The breadth of nonprofits we support is a testament to the generosity of the people of Northwest Mississippi and to the power of connecting people who care with causes that matter,” said Fulcher. “In 2025, the Community Foundation provided $6.9 million in grants to nonprofits, churches, schools, and government entities. Since 2002, the cumulative total of grants has topped $50 million.”
Their fundraising is donor driven, focusing on three key areas:
• Transfer of Wealth campaign, which is a long-term effort to educate families, financial advisors, and community leaders on how even a small percentage of local estates—if directed to charitable funds—can transform the counties for generations.
• The Endow Mississippi program provides a 25% state income tax credit—not a deduction—for gifts to permanent endowments at the Community Foundation. “It is the smartest, most generous tax incentive available to Mississippi donors. A tax credit reduces your tax bill dollar-for-dollar. When combined with federal deductions, you significantly reduce the net cost of your gift, and your endowed gift becomes a permanent charitable resource that serves Mississippi forever,” said Fulcher.
• Gifts of non-cash items or complex assets offer a tremendous tax savings opportunity. The Foundation has received gifts of cryptocurrency, oil and gas mineral rights, gold, vehicles, a 2,800-acre hunting club, undivided interest in property, and many other assets in addition to stocks/bonds, cash, life insurance policies, etc.
“I could share stories for hours, because every fund is a story about someone’s heart. Here are two that reflect the spirit of our region: A retired teacher established a fund to ensure that children in her hometown would always have access to books, tutoring, and after school programs. She told us, ‘I can’t teach forever, but my fund can.’
There was also a family that lost a child and created a memorial fund supporting youth mental health. Their grief was transformed into hope for other families.”
Fulcher spent 30-plus years in advancement in the Catholic school system in Biloxi, Jackson, and Vicksburg, and at the Delta State University Alumni-Foundation, which shaped how he understands philanthropy. “I learned that fundraising is ultimately about relationships and listening to what people care about. The Community Foundation allows me to take that same philosophy and apply it on a regional scale. Helping people invest in the future is the greatest privilege of my career,” he said. “I want Mississippians to know that we have an unprecedented opportunity to shape the future of our region. Over the next 10 to 20 years, billions of dollars will transfer between generations in Northwest Mississippi. If even a small percentage of that stays in our communities through charitable funds, it will change everything. Each of our seven community foundations in Mississippi are uniquely positioned to address the causes that matter.”