Caitlin Clark works to ‘use her platform for a lot of good’ with her own nonprofit

CLEVELAND — John Boller reached out to Caitlin Clark shortly after her freshman season with an idea.

Boller was looking to partner with a local athlete to raise awareness for the Coralville Community Food Pantry, of which he is executive director. Clark was “obviously the first one that came to mind” for the longtime fan of Iowa women’s basketball.

“Hey, we’d love to work with you,” Boller remembers saying. “We’d be happy to pay you a little something — I know it wouldn’t be much — just to thank you for your time.”

Clark quickly accepted part of the offer. Yes to the partnership. No to the money.

“I kind of laughed, I was like, ‘Of course, yeah, that’s how she’s wired,’” said Boller, the executive director of the food pantry. “It’s no surprise to me that she wanted to support her community and not take any resources away from the work we’re doing.”

After two rounds of her pro bono advocacy for the Coralville Community Food Pantry — it raised more than $100,000 with “support from all over the country” — Clark has taken her philanthropy to another level with her own nonprofit organization, the Caitlin Clark Foundation.

“How the Clarks are wired and how Caitlin’s wired is to use her platform for a lot of good,” Iowa associate head coach Jan Jensen said.

The Caitlin Clark Foundation’s mission is to “uplift and improve the lives of youth and their communities” through education, nutrition and sport — things that are “always what I’ve been most passionate about,” Clark said.

“Those are the same pillars that really have allowed me to have a lot of success in my life,” Clark said. “That makes it really easy to give back to kids because I know those can offer you a lot of opportunities.”

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The foundation’s leadership team, according to its website, consists mostly of members of the Clark family — Clark herself, her mother and her brother — in addition to Mary Coffin, a retired Wells Fargo executive.

Jensen gives plenty of credit to the “great team around her,” which takes a more active role in the foundation’s management when Clark’s basketball obligations take center stage.

“Once all that groundwork was laid, her parents know her value set,” Jensen said. “She knows who she is. … When she has the free time, she is more active in it.”

Boys and Girls Clubs benefit from donations

The Boys and Girls Clubs of Central Iowa have been an early beneficiary of Clark’s philanthropy. In addition to a $22,000 monetary donation, the foundation also gave the clubs more than $13,000 worth of sporting goods and winter clothes.

With the donations, the Boys and Girls Clubs of Central Iowa has “been able to give a lot of clothing to our club members who don’t always have access to quality items, such as the sweatshirts and apparel that came from Nike,” said Tony Timm, its chief executive officer.

“For somebody as young as Caitlin is to have that mindset of giving back and supporting, you don’t always get that,” Timm said. “That’s a rare quality. … She’s already figuring out her platform and how to give back to others.”

The Caitlin Clark Foundation still is in its early stages after earning tax-exempt status from the IRS in October 2023. It is new enough that the foundation has not yet needed to file a tax form 990, which makes annual revenue and expense information publicly accessible.

Clark sponsors contribute to her foundation

Despite being new, the Caitlin Clark Foundation already seem to be picking up momentum, thanks to her corporate sponsors.

State Farm announced a $22,000 donation to the Caitlin Clark Foundation on Jan. 22 — Clark’s 22nd birthday.

Gatorade committed a $22,000 donation to Clark’s foundation last year when the two-time national player of the year signed a sponsorship deal with them. The company announced another $25,000 donation last month when it released a limited-edition Caitlin Clark product line.

Proceeds from Hy-Vee’s “Caitlin’s Crunch Time” cereal, which arrived on shelves in January, benefit the foundation. The West Des Moines-based grocer also donated $35,690 to the foundation when Clark reached the 3,569 career points necessary to break Kelsey Plum’s scoring record.

The foundation is not accepting donations from the general public, although a message on the website says “soon you can join in our vision too.” A spokeswoman from Clark’s agency did not respond to The Gazette’s inquiry about when public donations will begin.

“Hopefully, I’ll be able to make an impact to people all across the country and especially in the state of Iowa — a place that has really given me a lot, has given my family a lot and allowed me a lot of opportunities to thrive and accomplish a lot of my goals,” Clark said in Cleveland ahead of this weekend’s Final Four games.

As for the Coralville Community Food Pantry, Boller still sees $22 donations come in despite not having a campaign with Clark this year.

“It’s been a game-changer for us,” Boller said.

While Clark is expected to be on the move to Indianapolis this summer — the Indiana Fever have the first pick in the WNBA Draft — her philanthropic support appears to be here to stay.

“They’ve made indications that they still want to provide support to the Iowa City community and probably back home for her in West Des Moines,” Boller said. “We’re hopeful that we can continue being a part of her story.”

Comments: john.steppe@thegazette.com