Category: Community Vision Fund

By Katy Hopp, executive director, Makaroff Youth Ballet Makaroff Youth Ballet (MYB) is thrilled to be premiering “Peter and the Wolf” at our spring concert on May 17 & 18, 2019. It’s the first big step in gearing up to present the piece, introducing both ballet and the instruments of the orchestra, to Appleton first […]

What a fantastic night to tailgate and take in a symphony under the stars! A $10,000 Bright Idea Fund grant from within the Community Foundation supported Friday’s “Brats, Beer & Beethoven” event at Fox Cities Stadium’s Neuroscience Group Field. The annual free, family-friendly evening features a concert by the Fox Valley Symphony Orchestra and guest […]

Neenah and Menasha elementary students will have a piece of hometown history in their hands for the 2018-19 school year. With the help of a $10,000 Bright Idea Fund grant from the Community Foundation, Wisconsin Public Television was able to create educational, multimedia resources that complement the Wisconsin Hometown Stories: Neenah-Menasha documentary. The materials include a […]

There is a good chance you know someone who has autism or is caring for an autistic child or adult.  The latest analysis from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 1 in 68 children has autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The term “spectrum” means there are a wide range of symptoms and levels […]

Chuck Self says his two loves in life are his family and serving his community. The Village of Harrison resident made his home in the Fox Valley eight years ago, and recently retired after a 40-year career in investment management. “I’m not slowing down though,” laughs Self, who now has more time to pursue his […]

Each “largest” gift comes with an element of surprise and awe. The May 1 announcement of David L. and Rita E. Nelson leaving the largest gift in the history of the Community Foundation — more than $100 million — to their donor advised fund seems like a gift that could never be matched. That’s the way […]

From paper to digital data: An Appleton East student takes a wellness screening. Thanks to a grant from the Bright Idea Fund within the Community Foundation, Samaritan Counseling Center of the Fox Valley will retire its paper-based filing system and implement an electronic database in local schools to prevent teen suicide in the Fox Valley. […]

By: Carol Couillard Development Director, Paper Discovery Center An education filled with science, technology, engineering, art and math (STE(A)M) is crucial in today’s schools, and, more importantly, in our community. However, keeping up is hard for kids recovering from domestic abuse, who often test lower than their peers, and are less likely to finish school. Thanks […]

Whether sexual assault survivor Brenda Tracy made an impact as the keynote speaker for the 2017 Voices of Men Breakfast and at half a dozen schools is not in question. The applause and the positive reviews were good indications. A Neenah High School student who said, “I have never felt more understood in my life” […]

Audrey Handler is known as the grande dame of contemporary glass. As one of the first female glass artists, she helped to break the proverbial glass ceiling for the celebrated women working today. Glass is the ultimate feminine medium, she says, because it is both fragile, yet strong and sharp. Handler is one of the […]

Destiny is a junior at Neenah High School and is participating in the Shoulders-to-Stand-On program. Grants from within the Community Foundation help provide girls from low-income families opportunities to successfully pursue post-secondary education and to remove barriers that could prevent them from reaching their goals..   By Michael Voet, executive director of Life Tools Foundation […]

By Greg Lemke-Rochon, CEO, Boys & Girls Clubs of the Fox Valley Being “worst in the nation” isn’t something we are used to in the state of Wisconsin. But, according to the esteemed Annie E. Casey Foundation, Wisconsin’s African-American children score at the very bottom of their Race for Results index, a composite of 12 […]