The Community Foundation of North Central Wisconsin is part of a national network of over 750 community foundations that are uniquely situated to improve their regions by enacting innovative solutions and creating powerful partnerships. From November 12-18, we celebrate Community Foundation Week, a time when we can share and reflect on stories of local impact and human connection over the past year. Though you may not yet know your local community foundation, you’ve likely felt its impact.

That’s because the Community Foundation of North Central Wisconsin and many other community foundations across the country help to bring donors and residents together. In a way that few other institutions can, community foundations work to support the efforts that will help the places we call home continue to flourish and grow.

Take, for example, Wausau’s Riverfront development. More than 17 acres of prime riverfront property along the Wisconsin River in Wausau has been reclaimed from blight and redeveloped into a vibrant destination for recreation, entertainment, dining, and high-end urban living. The multi-million-dollar Riverfront Development Project was supported by a grant of over $1 million from the Lawrence & Jane Sternberg Rivers Edge Development Fund—a component fund within the Community Foundation—and grants totaling $96,000 from various Community Enhancement Funds of the Community Foundation.

As we enter the giving season, millions of people from every background will be looking to give back to the communities that have supported them. They’ll also look to ensure that their heartfelt giving—however they choose to give—will have the most impact. That’s why so many of them will choose to give to a community foundation.

A gift to your local community foundation is an investment in the future of your community. We like to say that community foundations are “here for good.” At the Community Foundation of North Central Wisconsin, we don’t think about the next election or business cycle, we think about the next generation and the next after that.

That can seem a daunting task, but it’s one that we all share. During Community Foundation Week, I hope you’ll join us in recognizing our collective impact and the difference we can make together.

For more information on Community Foundation Week visit www.cof.org/cfweek and follow #CommunityFNDWeek on Twitter.