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Here at DAN we often hear the questions:
"What is an endowment?"
"Why does DAN have an endowment?"
"What does it support?" and
"How can I give to it?"
An endowment is a fund set up to ensure the future growth and maintenance of an organization - in this case, DAN, a 501(c)(3), non-profit organization. Money held by the endowment is referred to as the "corpus" of the fund. This money is never spent: it is invested for income and growth. Available income from the corpus may be used to support areas of DAN as needed and / or designated.
It is important to note that not all income from the corpus is considered "available income." We have a conservative use policy that requires that a minimum of 60 percent of the income is reinvested in the fund to ensure stable long-term growth of the DAN Endowment. Up to 40 percent may be spent to support DAN as designated.
The DAN Endowment helps build in financial security for the organization. While DAN currently does not use the income from the DAN Endowment to support DAN programs, it is important to have a hedge against possible future financial issues. In fact, our current policy is to not spend any of the income until the endowment reaches at least a $1 million corpus. Our goal is to continue to work efficiently and at the same time build a cushion of funding in case of unusual needs of particular programs, DAN departments or the company as a whole.
The DAN Endowment policies allow for two possible uses of available income generated. The first is restricted to support research - the core of work needed to continue the DAN Mission of dive safety. The second is to support DAN’s outreach programs and member services through the use of unrestricted money. This kind of money is essential, because it can be used where the need is greatest.
Gifts to the DAN Endowment are accepted in a variety of ways. Each year as you renew your membership, a line on the form (both on paper and on the web page using DAN E-Membership) allows you can add a gift for the DAN Endowment.
You may send a check or give online with a credit card. You can designate your gift during the Spring and / or Fall Fund-Raiser for the Endowment Fund. You can also send a gift of stock. Many choose to provide a planned gift (bequest, life insurance policy, trust or other form of gift realized in the future).Whatever your choice, your gift helps ensure that for years to come, DAN will be here for divers.
For more information, go to www.DiversAlertNetwork.org, or email development@dan.duke.edu
Note: DAN has established the Peter B. Bennett Research Fund, honoring the founder and CEO of the dive safety organization. To read about this, see "DAN Establishes The Peter B. Bennett Fund."
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