By Ashley Brugnone, CMP Writer
The MidwayUSA Foundation and the Potterfield Family have been outstanding supporters of the Civilian Marksmanship Program since 2013, the first year of the CMP Three-Position Air Rifle National Championships. The MidwayUSA Foundation, and Larry and Brenda Potterfield, have provided substantial support towards CMP youth team endowments in air rifle, smallbore and highpower programs. They have also been very generous in assisting the CMP with its expenses for junior matches.
The CMP is grateful for the opportunity to have a longtime relationship with an entity as passionate about marksmanship as the CMP. The CMP appreciates MidwayUSA’s commitment to safety, program advancement, support, and encouragement of junior shooters. The MidwayUSA Foundation and the CMP have been privileged to participate in this great partnership.
The MidwayUSA Foundation has generously invested more than $28 million in support and development of junior shooting in this country. The MidwayUSA Foundation has answered some questions to provide us with information to share about its priorities.
What are the origins of the MidwayUSA Foundation?
The MidwayUSA Foundation was established in 2007 to provide sustainable funding to youth shooting sports teams across the nation. Shooting teams provide wonderful opportunities for students to make friends, enhance citizenship, develop confidence, and learn discipline and leadership skills. Unfortunately, most schools provide little or no funding for shooting teams.
Founders, Larry, and Brenda Potterfield, owners of MidwayUSA, had the vision to offer youth interested in shooting sports the same opportunities as those in the more traditional team sports. MidwayUSA Foundation has invested approximately $165M in endowed funds to support over 2,800 youth shooting teams and 59 national and state youth shooting sports organizations.
What does the company specialize in – what are the goals or missions?
The MidwayUSA Foundation is a 501(c)(3) public charity working to sustain and grow the shooting sports industry by providing long-term funding to youth shooting teams. Every donation made is tax-deductible and allows the Foundation to assist in expanding and enhancing the leadership skills, confidence, and discipline of today’s youth through shooting sports activities. We support all shooting disciplines.
MISSION: We help communities and organizations raise funds to support their high school, college, and other youth shooting teams and activities. We also manage a variety of special purpose endowed funds for the support and advancement of youth shooting sports.
Of what is the organization most proud?
To date, we have provided over $28 million in cash grants. This is cash that youth shooting programs can use to cover team expenses like ammunition, targets, entry fees, travel, uniforms and more. In addition to cash grants, we offer a donation Matching Program. Funded by Larry and Brenda Potterfield, we have $150,000, each month in 2020, to match team donations. The ratio varies by donation dollars received in that month. We are also able to allocate 100% of each donation to the respective endowment because our operating costs are also covered by Larry and Brenda Potterfield.
Shooting teams with a MidwayUSA Foundation endowment are able to grow that endowment any way they choose, and we have many tools to assist them. We offer a large variety of free products they can receive for fundraisers, tool kits, a Peer-to-Peer fundraising platform, and every team can receive donations through our website.
Donor Confidence: MidwayUSA Foundation has earned and maintains the highest rating, the Platinum Seal of Transparency, from GuideStar and a 4-Star rating, the highest score, with Charity Navigator.
Are there any new endeavors or projects MidwayUSA Foundation is working on that you’d to announce?
Yes, we have two new initiatives that will help us continue making a lasting impact on youth shooting sports.
Coach Training Endowment:
Trained coaches are integral to youth shooting sports. Our youth cannot join a team, improve their skills, or compete without a qualified coach. Therefore, our intent for the Coach Training Endowment is to help organizations fund the training and certification of shooting coaches that will lead youth shooting sports teams.
Range Development Endowment:
Just as coaches are critical to youth shooting sports, so too is a place to shoot. The Range Development Endowment will help meet that need by encouraging existing ranges to expand to allow for more youth-oriented shooting activities.
Why does the MidwayUSA Foundation choose to support the CMP?
CMP shares our passion for growing and sustaining the youth shooting sports industry. This partnership allows CMP to continue to provide opportunities in marksmanship competitions, which leads to personal growth for our youth, while we are able to focus on the funding to continue these activities that are a passion for so many.
Anything else you’d like us to provide about the organization (how people can become involved, etc.), or any other comments about the organization’s relationship with CMP, please feel free to add!
We strongly recommend visiting our website (midwayusafoundation.org). Our website offers so much great information and tools for partners, like CMP, coaches, parents, volunteers, and athletes. Check to see if your shooting team or one in your area has an endowment by clicking ‘Find a Team. Fund a Team.’ and searching. Once you know if you’re ready to grow your endowment or start a new one, one of our Program Managers will be happy to help in either situation! Plus, you can continue to stay up to date by subscribing to our blog!
The Civilian Marksmanship Program is a federally chartered 501 (c) (3) non-profit corporation. It is dedicated to firearm safety and marksmanship training and to the promotion of marksmanship competition for citizens of the United States. For more information about the CMP and its programs, log onto www.TheCMP.org.
