News and notes from Imagine! and the Imagine! Foundation.

Good News Friday

Aug-14-2020

ImagineFoundation

Imagine! + The Imagine! Foundation = A 20 Year Relationship

With Solutions in Mind, the Imagine! Foundation was Formed

In the late 1990s, Imagine! (then Developmental Disabilities Center) realized that they were facing new and worrisome challenges in serving people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The Statewide waiting list of people who needed services was growing longer each year. Imagine! recognized an opportunity - that this community is willing and enthusiastic about creating solutions to problems facing our own citizens. In 2000, the Imagine! Foundation, a separate 501c3, Type 1 Supporting Organization, was formed to raise private funding and grow the community's awareness of the benefits people with intellectual disabilities bring to our community. Creating the Imagine! Foundation provided an avenue to bring in community leaders with specific goals of raising money and awareness to provide services to people with IDD in Boulder and Broomfield counties. Essentially, this established the Imagine! Foundation as the fundraising arm of Imagine!.

What is a Type 1 Supporting Organization?

The IRS recognizes the Imagine! Foundation as a Type 1 Supporting Organization, which by definition, "must be operated, supervised or controlled by its supported organization(s), typically by giving the supported organization(s) the power to regularly appoint or elect a majority of the directors or trustees of the supporting organization. The relationship between the supported organization(s) and the supporting organization is sometimes described as similar to a parent-subsidiary relationship."

The fundraising areas are established by Imagine! and approved by both Boards of Directors. The Imagine! Foundation only fundraises for Imagine!’s services and emergency funds. Per the requirements of U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) and IRS regulations, the financial statements of Imagine! and the Imagine! Foundation are consolidated and the true overhead costs of the Imagine! Foundation as a percentage of the overall Imagine! budget is 1%. Imagine! Foundation expenses include 2.1 full-time employees, the Imagine! Celebration annual event, and basic office costs.

Why is the Imagine! Foundation Set up This Way?

The value of establishing the Imagine! Foundation as a separate but supporting nonprofit with its own Board of Directors cannot be overstated. Most nonprofits have a Development Department and a Board Development Committee, usually consisting of 3-5 board members. Over the last 20 years, more than 80 community leaders have served on the Imagine! Foundation Board, extending education and fundraising into the community at large with impressive results. Imagine! Foundation Board of Directors have raised over $10 million. As educational ambassadors, their efforts have helped transform Imagine! from being a well-kept secret to a widely-known, well-supported nonprofit serving people with intellectual disabilities in Boulder and Broomfield counties with innovative supports that extend well beyond meeting basic needs.

Who Supports the Imagine! Foundation and How are Donations Used?

Imagine! Foundation funding comes from private donations and grants that we receive from our community to support people with intellectual and developmental disabilities in living active and fulfilling lives in that same community. These funds are not tied to any government programs, and enable Imagine! to offer services that go far beyond what traditional funding sources allow. Because of the Imagine! Foundation, people of all ages with an intellectual or developmental disability living in Boulder and Broomfield counties have access to a much broader and more comprehensive set of services than most others living in Colorado.

Now in our 20th year, here are highlights of what our incredible donors have made possible:

Build two SmartHomes that allow our residents to live with more independence and increased safety.
Purchase and maintain five other residential sites for clients who need 24/7 care.
Support Imagine!’s vital services, including:
- Quality educational and therapeutic Early Intervention Services to support children in meeting developmental milestones, as well as their families
- After School and Summer Camp programs to help school age kids with intellectual disabilities participate in enriching activities that support the development of skills that will last them a lifetime
- Supported Employment programs so adults with intellectual disabilities can find and maintain work at local businesses, and contribute to their communities in meaningful ways
- Enriching community-based day program activities that help adults with intellectual disabilities build skills which can be transferred to all aspects of their lives
- A residential program designed to ensure that adults with developmental disabilities can be active, participating members of their communities
Purchase vehicles and accessibility retrofits to support the 80+ fleet of vehicles that help make our programs community-based
Help Imagine! rebuild homes after the 2013 Boulder County floods
Support an Emergency Fund to help people we serve during crisis situations
Add emerging technologies to increase independence and self-reliance, including iPads, remote supports, Virtual Reality, and more
Run a COVID-19 Rapid Response Fund to support Imagine! employees as well as people served by Imagine! and their families to help ensure our people don’t suffer devastating financial set-backs