Arsenal Credit Union donor advised fund moves to Cornerstone Foundation

Arnold, Mo.-based Arsenal Credit Union has moved their donor advised fund, the Arsenal Credit Union Community Impact Fund, to the Cornerstone Foundation due to its recent merger with the Heartland Charitable Credit Union Foundation. Arsenal's Marketing Analyst Jennifer Remes manages the fund and reports that the credit union has always been involved in social responsibility efforts to benefit the community through donations, branch drives, volunteer hours, and more.

“While we continue to support the community in these ways, the goal of the fund was to streamline this process and to be able to have a much larger impact,” said Remes. “By creating a donor advised fund, we could continue corporate giving and include an added element of employee giving, too. Through the payroll deduction, employees can have funds taken directly from their paychecks to support our fund.”

While Remes manages the foundation, the decision-making process as to who will receive the grants is wholly democratic and voted on by a committee of credit union employees, along with Arsenal Executive Vice President Lori Crutchley.

“Arsenal Credit Union is dedicated to the mission of ‘people helping people’ and supporting nonprofit organizations in our community,” said Crutchley. “Through payroll deduction in our donor advised fund, we have increased employee engagement and been able to give so much back to our community. Our employees are very passionate about giving back, and this donor advised fund lets us expand on that and continue to support and enrich the lives of those who aren’t so fortunate.”

Remes said the fund will support nonprofit organizations in their community that are doing good and whose missions the donor committee wants to support. Grants help the organizations continue outreach with the funds to support their unique projects that benefit thousands of people. Organizations are invited to submit grant applications once or twice per year.

The credit union’s foundation was created in late 2019 and was officially announced in 2020. In January 2023, with the merger of the Heartland Credit Union Foundation and the Cornerstone Foundation, the Arsenal Credit Union Community Impact Fund changed over to the latter.

“Since the inception of the Arsenal Community Impact Fund, we have awarded $44,800 to dozens of nonprofit organizations,” said Remes. “We hope to be able to continue the mission of the Community Impact Fund for many years and to have an even bigger impact in our community.”

Remes adds that “While the operational procedures may have changed, we remain true to original objectives.”  

A Cornerstone Foundation donor advised fund offers many of the advantages of a private/public credit union foundation without the initial set-up costs, ongoing excise taxes, and administrative expenses. By partnering with the Cornerstone Foundation, a credit union avoids continual compliance and reporting requirements, as well as a separate accounting system to track the nonprofit’s financials.

If you have questions, please email Emily Moreno, Cornerstone Foundation program director.