News Release

Maddox Foundation Shines In Nashville

Nashville, Jun 12, 2002 - A shining example of generosity in Nashville

Former Tennessee Gov. Winfield Dunn was there. So was mega-wealthy HCA health care chairman Tommy Frist, whose brother represents Tennessee in the U.S. Senate.

Many other members of Nashville's power establishment also came to dinner Tuesday night to witness the Hernando-based Maddox Foundation's generosity to their community foundation.

Most of them knew ahead of time that the foundation that moved from Nashville to DeSoto County three years ago was announcing $850,000 in charitable donations as well as the gift of the former Maddox companies' headquarters for the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee. That was enough to attract many of Nashville's political and business leaders.

What they didn't know, however, is that the Maddox Foundation was giving $10 million. That's right - $10 million to middle Tennessee's community foundation.

When Maddox Foundation president Robin Costa announced the donation, gasps came from the audience. Then came a standing ovation.

The power brokers of Nashville were at least as impressed as were the 50 or so DeSoto County members of the Community Foundation of Northwest Mississippi who had made the trip. We went not only to support the Maddox Foundation since it is based in DeSoto County, but also to learn more about what a community foundation can do to improve the quality of life.

One thing we saw is the power of an advised fund. The Maddox Foundation's $10 million gift will be distributed by the community foundation for charitable purposes as the Maddox Foundation advises. It doesn't have to be spent quickly. It can continue to grow until suitable purposes are identified. The community foundation manages the money until it is advised to give it away.

It was a helpful way for the Maddox Foundation to exit from the Nashville charity scene. The $10 million can probably generate $500,000 a year to be invested in charitable organizations without ever touching the principal.

Those funds can help Middle Tennessee well into the future.

As the Maddox Foundation shifts its attention to its new home, we hope the Community Foundation of Northwest Mississippi can attract investments like the ones Nashville just received. It will be up to the leaders of DeSoto County and the rest of the Northwest Mississippi to build a foundation worthy of such commitment and capable of doing substantial good.

Certainly, human beings in our area have multiple needs. People have good ideas about how to meet those needs. Funds apparently may be available for implementing those ideas. We just need to create and maintain charitable organizations that can connect the funds with human needs in effective, efficient ways.

Nashville offered us an example.