Winona Community Foundation

What Winona Community Foundation does

The Winona Community Foundation is a 501(c)(3) community foundation incorporated in 1987 and headquartered in Winona, Minnesota, serving the greater Winona region across Minnesota and Wisconsin. It manages more than $20 million in assets under management across donor advised, designated, field of interest, scholarship, and agency funds, and in 2024 awarded over $4.25 million in grants to local charities. Its core operational surface includes the Community Grant Program (two cycles per year, capacity-building grants up to $15,000 and sustaining grants up to $5,000), fiscal sponsorships for emerging nonprofits, planned giving services, a scholarship program, the Winona Area Nonprofit Alliance (50+ member organizations), and the Winona Gives online giving portal.

The foundation is staffed by three full-time employees (President/CEO Mandi Olson, Finance Director Vicki Elliott, and Admin & Communications lead Emily Lofaro) and governed by a volunteer board drawn from local business, banking, education, and civic leadership. Its technology footprint is limited to the FC Suite fund management and donation portal and Constant Contact email — no proprietary technology, AI, or data assets are disclosed. Affiliate foundations in Goodview and Lewiston extend its regional reach, and accreditation under the National Standards for U.S. Community Foundations plus a Candid Platinum rating validate its operational governance.

Revenue mechanics are characteristic of an endowed public charity rather than a commercial enterprise: the foundation pools charitable gifts (cash, stocks, real estate, mutual fund shares, planned bequests) into endowed funds, invests them, and distributes a portion annually through grants while preserving principal for perpetual giving. Distribution policy requires a $100 minimum grant request (with $500 strongly encouraged), and grants of $5,000 or more require board approval. The organization maintains no parent company and operates as an independent nonprofit.

Name

Winona Community Foundation

Legal name

Winona Community Foundation

Website

https://winonacf.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1987

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Winona Community Foundation is a 501(c)(3) community foundation founded in 1987 that manages over $20 million in charitable funds and awarded more than $4.25 million in grants in 2024 to nonprofits across the greater Winona region.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Community Foundation and Charitable Fund Management

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321), Grantmaking and Giving Services (8132)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Community Foundations (BPAGAKAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Capacity Building & Nonprofit Infrastructure Funders (BPAGAKAO), Philanthropic & Charitable Trust Services (FSAAANAI), Scholarship & Fellowship Foundations and Trusts (EDADAHAC), Grantmaking & Philanthropic Funds (Institutional Donors) (BPADAOAB)

Keywords

• Community foundation services
• Charitable fund management
• Donor advised funds
• Community grantmaking
• Planned giving services

Headquarters

HQ city

Winona

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Charitable Gifts and Donations: The foundation receives charitable gifts from donors including cash, stocks, mutual fund shares, real estate, and other assets. These gifts establish various fund types (donor advised, designated, field of interest, scholarship, agency funds). Revenue is generated through investment returns on the endowment portfolio managed by the foundation.
2. Fund Management and Investment Returns: The foundation manages over $20 million in assets under management. Investment returns on endowed funds generate income that is distributed through the foundation's grant programs while preserving principal for perpetual giving.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

The Winona Community Foundation manages charitable funds on behalf of individual donors, families, and businesses, including donor advised funds, designated funds, field of interest funds, scholarship funds, and agency funds. It redistributes capital to the greater Winona region through a twice-yearly competitive Community Grant Program, fiscal sponsorships for emerging nonprofits, and managed scholarship funds for local students.

Product overview

Winona Community Foundation operates as a unified platform of charitable giving services built around fund management and community grantmaking. The core offering consists of fund types (Donor Advised Funds, Designated Funds, Field of Interest Funds, Agency Funds, Scholarship Funds) managed through the Foundation, supplemented by the Community Grant Program that distributes grants to local nonprofits. Additional services include Fiscal Sponsorship for emerging projects, Planned Giving for deferred gifts, Legacy Society membership, the Winona Area Non-Profit Alliance (WANA) for nonprofit collaboration, Winona Gives online giving portal, a Nonprofit Directory, annual Charity Golf Outing, and Founders Award recognition program. Together these services enable donors to accomplish philanthropic goals while the Foundation serves as the administrative and strategic partner.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Donor Advised Funds Charitable giving vehicles allowing donors to make irrevocable gifts, receive immediate tax deductions, retain naming rights, recommend grants, and name successor advisors, with funds co-mingled for investment.
• Charitable Fund Management Management of donor advised funds, designated funds, field of interest funds, agency funds, and scholarship funds on behalf of donors to accomplish philanthropic goals.
• Community Grant Program Competitive grant program awarding community grants to local nonprofits through two application cycles per year (March 1 and September 1 deadlines), supporting capacity building up to $15,000 and sustaining requests up to $5,000.
• Fiscal Sponsorship Provides fiscal and administrative infrastructure for charitable projects and initiatives, allowing them to operate under the Foundation's 501(c)(3) status while raising funds for their mission.
• Planned Giving Facilitates deferred gifts including bequests through wills, charitable gift annuities, charitable remainder trusts, charitable lead trusts, life insurance beneficiary designations, and retained life estates.
• Scholarship Funds Manages named scholarship funds for local students including Storm Sporting Events, Brianna Grace Vitek, Gary Mills, Gomez Montessori, Jack Rader, and Morrie Miller Memorial scholarships.
• Winona Area Nonprofit Alliance (WANA) Network of over 50 nonprofit organizations providing collaboration, resource sharing, professional development, and monthly roundtable gatherings to maximize community impact.
• Winona Gives Online giving platform enabling donors to learn about and donate directly to nonprofits doing work in the Winona area, operated in partnership with the Nonprofit Alliance.
• Nonprofit Directory Online directory listing local nonprofits with 501(c)(3) status, organized by 15 categories including Arts & Humanities, Civic, Education, Health & Wellness, Human Services, and Environment.
• Legacy Society Recognition society honoring individuals who support the Foundation through wills, trusts, life income gifts, gifts of real estate, retirement plans, life insurance designations, and other planned gifts, with exclusive society events.

Quantifiable outcome

• $4.25 million+ awarded to local charities in 2024
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• WNB FinancialcoreTechnology or IntegrationWNB Financial Trust Department serves as the financial institution for stock transfers to the foundation. Contact: (507) 494-9269, DTC #: 2039, Institution #: 94952, Account #: 11053-c for credit to WNB Financial F/B/O WN1773 Winona Community Foundation.
• Goodview Community FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAn affiliate of the Winona Community Foundation, dedicated to supporting programs and projects which improve quality of life and build a stronger community for the Goodview Area. Located at 4140 5th Street #100, Goodview, MN 55987.
• Lewiston Community FoundationminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAffiliate community foundation expanding the foundation's regional reach in the greater Winona area.
• The Bridges Golf CourseminorGTM or Marketing PartnerVenue for the annual Charity Golf Outing event benefiting the Community Grant Program. Located at 22852 County Hwy-17, Winona, MN.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Greater Mankato Area Community Foundation: A southern Minnesota community foundation administering donor advised funds, scholarship funds, and community grants for the Mankato region. Directly comparable by fund offerings, regional scale, and reliance on professional advisor partnerships for planned giving.
• Rochester Area Foundation: A community foundation serving the Rochester, MN region with a comparable mix of donor advised funds, scholarship funds, and competitive community grantmaking. Most directly comparable peer by structure, geography (southeast Minnesota), and asset base scale.
• Duluth Superior Area Community Foundation: A community foundation covering the Twin Ports of Duluth, MN and Superior, WI — operating a similar suite of fund types, scholarship administration, and competitive community grants. Comparable by regional scale, donor base composition, and nonprofit ecosystem model.

Broad incumbents

• Fidelity Charitable: The largest national donor-advised fund sponsor in the U.S., offering DAFs with a sophisticated technology platform and broad investment options. Competes with WCF for the same Winona-area high-net-worth donors and represents the primary competitive threat to local community foundation AUM growth.
• Schwab Charitable: A leading national donor-advised fund sponsor affiliated with Charles Schwab, providing DAFs integrated with brokerage accounts. Competes for the same donor advised fund dollars as WCF, particularly from investors in the Winona professional advisor community.
• National Philanthropic Trust: A national donor-advised fund sponsor and one of the largest independent DAF providers in the U.S. Overlaps with WCF in DAF and planned giving offerings, and competes for nationally mobile donors who might otherwise fund local community foundation work.

Regional players

• The Minneapolis Foundation: The largest community foundation in Minnesota, serving the Twin Cities metro with substantially greater AUM and a broader grantmaking footprint. Comparable in mission and product set, but operates at materially larger scale and across a denser, wealthier donor market.
• Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation: A regional development foundation serving 20 counties in southern Minnesota with grantmaking, lending, and capacity-building programs for nonprofits and small businesses. Overlaps with WCF in regional grantmaking and nonprofit capacity building, though it adds an economic development lending dimension.
• Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation: A Minnesota-based community foundation offering donor advised funds, scholarship administration, and competitive grants across the eastern Twin Cities metro. Comparable fund offerings and mission, with a larger asset base and a statewide focus.

Others

• Council on Foundations: The national membership association for U.S. foundations and corporate giving programs, including the body that awards the National Standards for U.S. Community Foundations accreditation held by WCF. Not a direct peer but a relevant ecosystem participant governing the accreditation framework.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/winonaalliance
• Facebookfacebook.com/WinonaCF
• Instagraminstagram.com/winonanonprofitalliance
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/winonacommunityfoundation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles16 records

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Winona Community Foundation