GIVE Greene fund created to assist charitable causes
news@greenecountymessenger.com
A new endowed fund has been created to serve charitable causes and make positive changes in Greene County through natural gas royalties.
The EQT Foundation recently partnered with the Community Foundation of Greene County to create the GIVE Greene Fund.
The endowed fund is meant to serve local charitable causes in Greene County, including nonprofits, schools and municipalities in perpetuity.
EQT Foundation is the philanthropic extension of EQT Corp., which is the nation鈥檚 largest natural-gas producer.
GIVE Greene County Fund is modeled after a similar fund in Ohio, and EQT is anticipating support from EQT-held leaseholders in Greene County by offering a unique method of participation via a royalty-withholding program.
Greene County landowners with a lease with EQT Production Co. and/or its affiliates have the option to withhold a certain percentage of their monthly royalties to be sent directly to the Community Foundation of Greene County toward the GIVE Greene County Fund.
鈥淭he EQT Foundation has been a strong partner of the Community Foundation and Greene County for many years,鈥� said Dave Calvario, executive director of the Community Foundation. 鈥淭he new GIVE Greene Fund further shows their commitment to serve Greene County and make positive changes.鈥�
To participate, a landowner must fill out a GIVE Campaign Enrollment Form online, and a donation will be made on the landowner鈥檚 behalf to the fund. All tax incentives will be realized by the landowner for such a donation.
The EQT Foundation will match qualifying donations to the fund up to $10,000 for the first year of donor participation provided that the donations exceed $100 in aggregate.
鈥淥ur industry has done much for so many in the county,鈥� said Ellen Rossi, president of the EQT Foundation. 鈥淏y creating this unique fund, we are asking our landowners to join us as partners in philanthropy to ensure Greene County nonprofits can continue to evolve as they carry out their important work every day.鈥�
Alternatively, donations can also be directly made to the Community Foundation of Greene County via personal check, stock transfer or credit card as contributions must be directed to the GIVE Greene County Fund.
The GIVE Campaign Enrollment Form can be found at 鈥淥wner Relations鈥� at eqt.com.
For more information on the Community Foundation of Greene County, visit www.cfgcpa.org.