Initiatives

Initiative, n. the action of taking the first step or move; responsibility for beginning or originating

Coastal Community Foundation has taken the “first step” more than once in its 32-year history, when community issues have presented themselves.

In the past several years, CCF has embraced two initiatives - Heirs’ Property Preservation Project and the Lowcountry Conservation Loan Fund.

Center for Heirs’ Property Preservation
Heirs’ property is land that has been passed down for generations without the benefit of clear title. All the heirs own the property equally, regardless of whether they have lived on the land, paid its taxes or never set foot on it. If one heir decides to sell, the land must be sold unless everyone can agree on its use and ownership. Frequently, disagreements lead to forced sales in the courts and the land is lost forever.

Since the end of the Civil War, nearly 14 million acres of heirs’ land have been lost. Today, a little over a million acres remain. In the Lowcountry, that land borders the marshes, wetlands and coast. Once considered “mosquito-infested” and undesirable, it is now prime real estate.

The Heirs’ Property Preservation Project, funded by the Ford Foundation ($300,000 over 3 years), has provided educational workshops and materials, free legal assistance, surveyor and land appraisal expertise for thousands of predominantly African American heirs’ property owners to help them resolve land disputes. So far, 202 cases have been settled.

Today, that initiative has led to the creation of an independent nonprofit - Center for Heirs’ Property Preservation (CHPP).

To find our more about the new Center and/or to support its efforts, contact Jennie Stephens, executive director, at: 843-745-7055.

Lowcountry Conservation Loan Fund
Imagine our beloved Lowcountry without the rose-hued marsh expanses at sunset…without the clean rows of farmland and black water tidal creeks?

The Merck Family Fund and the Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation have been worried about valuable land loss for a long time. In 2002, each contributed $500,000 to create the Lowcountry Conservation Loan Fund at CCF to provide conservation groups with low-interest, interim loans to protect valuable, “at-risk” Lowcountry land.

Since then, the Fund has made three loans, two of which have been fully repaid. The first loan was given to The Nature Conservancy to benefit the Francis Marion National Forest. The second enabled The Audubon Society to add to its holdings in the Audubon Sanctuary at Beidler Forest. Most recently, CCF loaned the Edisto Open Land Trust $380,000 to acquire 24 acres of farmland to help preserve a portion of scenic Highway 174 in the ACE Basin.

Partnerships

Organizations comprised of many members who give collectively to charities of their own choosing

Philanthropy cannot thrive without the collaborative partnership of a diverse community.

Three philanthropic partners came to us with their own particular desires to give back to their community. Together, we found just the right way to set up their funds to make their charitable dreams come true. 

To find out more about our philanthropic partners, click on the following names in right-hand column:

Women Making a Difference (WMD)
Charitable Society of Charleston
Realtors Association of Charleston (RHOF)
WomenGive