open a fund

live here. give here.

An ECCF Giving Fund is a donor-advised fund (DAF) that offers unique benefits – to you and to your community.

A simple and streamlined charitable investment vehicle, an ECCF Giving Fund allows you to support your favorite causes and organizations from one dedicated account. Gift cash, stocks or noncash assets into your fund and receive a tax deduction immediately upon contribution. Your funds are managed by ECCF, growing tax free over time. Which means that your ability to do good also grows. When you want to make a donation, use ECCF’s convenient fund advisor portal to recommend grants from your fund to the nonprofit organizations of your choice. It’s that easy.

THE ECCF DIFFERENCE: WHY LOCAL MATTERS

We get to know you – your philanthropic goals and your interests – to expand your giving potential and your impact.

We have deep relationships in the community and can connect you with nonprofits doing groundbreaking work. So, while you can make grants to any registered 501c3 anywhere in the world, we offer the only community-driven charitable investment vehicle backed by a local focus and data-driven insight.

Our mission is improving the quality of life for all Essex County residents, which means our fundholders are invited into a community that is creating a social movement for good.

THE VALUE OF COMMUNITY FOUNDATIONS

A community foundation is a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the lives of the people who live in the region they serve. We launch community leadership initiatives, support donors on their philanthropic journeys and help nonprofit organizations increase their capacity through grantmaking, coalition building and education. Many, like ECCF, offer a range of charitable investment vehicles to power this work, including donor-advised, scholarships, field-of-interest, and nonprofit funds.

While some of these charitable investment vehicles are offered by big banks and investment firms, it’s only at a community foundation like ECCF that the industry-standard management fees are reinvested in your local community. Combined with our knowledge of the real challenges and opportunities facing our region, community foundations have an outsized impact on the people and places they serve.