Land gifted to Allegany County Foundation turned into nearly $1 million. Here's how.

The Allegany County Area Foundation surveyed its portfolio a few years ago and noted it could use an influx of unrestricted grant money — funds that could be applied to any worthy cause in the county.

Today, thanks to one of the largest and most unique gifts in the history of the foundation, it is heading into 2024 with a record-setting fund balance.

V Perry Carter, who grew up in Allegany County, donated 293 acres of old-growth forest to the foundation in 2023. The timberland, with a hunting cabin, old logging roads and thousands of mature hardwood trees, went on the market and quickly drew 11 bids.

The property ultimately sold for $974,000.

That marked the largest gift from a living donor in the foundation’s four decades of distributing scholarships and grant awards in Allegany County.

“It will help us a lot,” said Executive Director Bruce Campbell. “This is a permanent, endowed fund. It really cements the family legacy and does a lot of good in the county. This should still be turning out grants 100 years from now.”

Who is V Perry Carter?

Carter’s gift established the Carter-Windus Family Fund. Carter and his sister, Patricia Carter Windus, grew up in Friendship where the family was involved in business, farming, church and civic affairs for generations. Carter’s father, Roy Carter, purchased the iconic Carter’s Hardware in Wellsville and inherited the Carter Hardware in Friendship from his father, Valentine Carter.

The former Carter family home at 37 E. Main St. is now the Carter House Ministry Center of the United Church of Friendship.

Both V Perry Carter and his sister Patricia, who married Harold Windus of Belmont, are now in their 90s. While they no longer reside in New York, they maintained an interest in Allegany County and its residents.

V Perry Carter had owned the acreage on Bliven Hill Road in the Town of Amity since the 1980s.

“He’s a nice man, very smart, very gracious,” Campbell said.

How will the funds benefit Allegany County?

The Allegany County Area Foundation manages 56 scholarship funds and 36 grant funds with an endowment of over $13 million. Many of the funds are targeted to specific causes or groups. The Carter-Windus Family Fund, though, will be used at the discretion of the foundation’s board, allowing it to support immediate needs and issues that may arise in the future.

Recent grants have supported a number of libraries, food pantries, community agencies, the arts and youth programs in the county.

“Unrestricted grant funds are huge,” said Campbell. “When the Cuba Library had a flood a couple years ago, we don’t have a Cuba Library fund but with an unrestricted fund we were able to just write a check for whatever they needed to start recovering.

"Unrestricted funds allow you that type of flexibility. It can be used for any sort of public good or non-profit organization.”

The gift principal is invested, and the foundation will essentially give away the earnings each year in grants. The foundation expects to issue the first grants from the fund in July 2024. An application form and contact information are available on the ACAF website for organizations interested in applying.

Campbell said the new Carter-Windus Family Fund, coupled with the Joseph Bucher Fund and the Charles and Lorraine Joyce Family Fund, will allow the Foundation to offer more and potentially larger grants.

“There are a lot of needs in the county and a lot of organizations doing good work to address these, and we are glad that we’ll be able to do more to support their efforts,” he said.

How did the land donation turn into nearly $1 million?

The gift was in the works for nearly a year. The foundation was approached in spring 2022, and after months of due diligence and working through the transfer process, the land formally changed hands in January.

It was assessed for around $282,000, but V Perry Carter shrewdly conducted a timber survey that identified a wealth of hardwood trees, substantially boosting interest in the property. The top bidder, Kiko Chalres Point, LLC officially closed on the 293 acres in May.

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The near $1 million price tag turned into the largest gift the foundation has ever received from a living donor. Campbell said only two gifts, both from estates, were larger.

The foundation has received a few real estate donations over the years, but the Amity property “was unique in type and scale,” said Campbell.

“A donation of real estate would only be accepted after we have done our background work on the property and on its salability and consulted with an attorney,” he said. “Because of that, such a gift, if accepted, takes some time to come to fruition.”

This article originally appeared on The Evening Tribune: Land donation to Allegany County Area Foundation generates $1 million