Creating a charitable legacy can often seem like a formidable undertaking. Isn’t it true that only the super wealthy are able to make an impact? 

Not at all. Thanks to the Greater Milwaukee Foundation’s Acorn Fund program, people of modest means and all ages have the opportunity to make a big difference a little at a time. With Acorn Funds, you make regular monthly contributions of as little as $100 until the fund grows to grantmaking size. Gifts are tax deductible and reinvesting the income earned can speed the growth of the fund. 

Jon Barsanti, a retired CPA and former senior tax partner with Ernst & Young, created the idea in 1990. Over the past two decades, donors at community foundations worldwide have adopted this concept as a way to build their funds and their philanthropy. The concept has allowed any donor to start small, with the full expectation that over time, they can make a big difference. 

updated July 2021

alinea Fund

America's Freedom Center Foundation's Veterans Manor Assistance Fund

Anonymous Fund

Anonymous C Fund

Anonymous DM Fund

Anonymous JEA Fund

Beam of Light Fund

David and Diane Bedran Fund

Bergholz Family Fund

Lisa Berman Fund

The Bickham Project

Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Washington County, Inc. Fund - West Bend Foundation, Inc.

Brain Trust Fund

Brandt-Johnson Family Fund

Joshua and Irene Brittingham Foundation Fund

Vernadine Jefferson Brooks Scholarship Fund

Bruce C. and Joan K. Brown Family Foundation - Oconomowoc Area Foundation, Inc.

Ralph and Eileen Cairns Fund for Literacy Purposes

John and Julie Carpenter Family Fund

Mike and Pat Carr Education Fund

Cedarburg Dam Perpetuity Fund - Greater Cedarburg Foundation, Inc.

Chris and Heidi Chlupp Family Fund - West Bend Foundation, Inc.

Christian Gap Fund

City of West Bend White Bridge Fund - West Bend Community Foundation, Inc.

Brian J. and Catherine M. Cummings Fund

Learn More

Contact a member of our philanthropic services team to learn more about starting a fund

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