Submitted photo David 'Coop' Cooper, chief executive officer for the Tucker Community Foundation, right, spoke with President Phillips Kolsun and the Rotary Club of Elkins.

ELKINS — David “Coop” Cooper, chief executive officer for the Tucker Community Foundation, spoke with the Rotary Club of Elkins recently.

The Tucker Community Foundation was founded in 1988, in the aftermath of the flood that decimated Parsons as well as many other communities in Tucker County and the surrounding counties. The spirit of neighbors helping neighbors following that devastating event was the genesis of the foundation. Since its founding, over $30.8 million in grants and scholarships have been awarded to local communities, organizations and students.

After its beginning in Tucker County, the foundation now serves communities and organizations in ten counties – Barbour, Garrett (Maryland), Grant, Mineral, Pendleton, Pocahontas, Preston, Randolph, Tucker and Upshur.

“In our service area, we’ve been able to expand twice since I’ve been CEO. We have a ten-county service area,” said Cooper. “About ten years ago they did a survey and found that three counties were not covered by a community foundation. There are private foundations in these counties, but private foundations have a certain cause. Community foundations don’t have those restrictions and are able to give out scholarships and other things in all those other categories so it’s important that a community has access to a community foundation.”

With the inclusion of Pendleton and Upshur counties in the Tucker Community Foundation, all counties within West Virginia now have access to a community foundation.

One of the keystone projects for the foundation is scholarships. The number of scholarship applications for the current year nearly doubled over the previous year, moving from 130 to almost 200 for the current year. Scholarships totaling $133,000 were awarded to 80 students attending 47 institutions and studying such diverse majors as Pre-Med and Diesel Mechanics. Of the total scholarships awarded, students from Randolph County received $13,000 in scholarship funds.

Last year, all approved applicants received $130,000 with Randolph County organizations receiving nearly $12,000 in grant funds. Programs like Dolly Parton Imagination Library, Augusta Heritage Center, Pickins School playground and the Old Brick Playhouse received funds.

One of the foundation’s largest fundraising events of the year is Run For It which will take place on September 27. Since its inception in 2007, Run For It has raised a total of $3.2 million, with $532,000 being returned to Randolph County organizations. Cooper expressed appreciation for the Randolph County Commission and its total commitment of $63,000 to Run For It over the past seventeen years. More information about this year’s Run For It event can be found at the foundation’s website, www.tuckerfoundationwv.org.

The foundation receives monies and invests it for the long term. Currently, the return on the monies deposited with the foundation equals 5% of the deposit as of January 1st. The Foundation also provides training and support for the non-profit organizations in its service area.

According to Cooper, most organizations that apply to the foundation for grants are looking to fund projects in the neighborhood of $10,000. “There were two groups who were in the millions. One was an adaptive park for ADA disabilities in Garrett County, and the other was in Preston County, trying to buy a fire engine,” said Cooper. “Everybody else was $10,000 or less and our foundation, and the way we’re set up, we’re at a very nice, sweet spot where we can take a couple of those each year because $10,000 is definitely within the budget of the foundation.”

Unrestricted funds may be established with a minimum gift of $5,000. Other funds, such as scholarships, require a minimum gift of $20,000. These minimums make it possible for the foundation to generate meaningful disbursements for the designees. For example, the minimum scholarship gift of $20,000 generates an annual $1,000 distribution.

Three of the counties included in the foundation have a community fund, Randolph County being one of the three. The income generated by the community funds may only be disbursed to the county of origin. “Any money going into that fund only goes to Randolph County. Preston and Pendelton are the only other counties. Rotary got the Randolph County fund started,” concluded Cooper.

To learn more about the Tucker Community Foundation, or to make a gift to support the Foundation’s work, visit www.tuckerfoundationwv.org. Additional information can also be found on Facebook – Tucker Community Foundation.

Rotary is a global network of 1.4 million neighbors, friends, leaders and problem-solvers who see a world where people unite and take action to create lasting change – across the globe, in their communities, and in themselves. Visit www.Rotary.org to learn more about Rotary International, visit the club’s Facebook page – Rotary Club of Elkins – or contact 2025-2026 club president Phillips Kolsun at phillipskolsun@gmail.com for more information about the Rotary Club of Elkins.