Category: Donors’ Stories of Giving

A good deed often leads to another. And another. In New London, the spirit of volunteering and charitable giving has been steadily growing. The community is benefiting from the generosity of Joe Van Alstine and his wife, Lori Dehlinger Van Alstine. Their passion for the community runs deep, and they’ve provided for legacy gifts in […]

Seven generations ago, Elisha D. Smith bought a wooden bucket factory that grew into the international packaging company Menasha Corp. Now a handful of his descendants are working to hand down a legacy of philanthropy and are finding it’s also good for business. Starting with $50,000, the group dreams of having a major impact on charities in the […]

When more information is needed for a major issue affecting the health and safety of people in the Fox Valley, CHAT (Community Health Action Team) digs deep. The group recently celebrated the contributions of Ray Durkee, one of those who has been digging since the start in 2002. ThedaCare’s Community Health Action Team (CHAT) brings […]

When the members of the Infant Welfare Circle Grants Committee met on Nov. 21, they had six grant recommendations totaling $14,000, and they liked them all. The requests included: CHAPS Academy – $3,000 for suicide prevention and intervention programs that involve young people working with horses as part of their counseling. Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin […]

Interior construction of the Community First Career Exploration and Financial Literacy Center’s storefronts will be completed in time for the grand opening event Wednesday, January 22, 2020. The carpet is in, the lights are on and the walls will soon be splashed with color! Junior Achievement (JA) and Fox Valley Technical College are putting the […]

Our fiscal year 2018 was an incredible, record-breaking year for giving. We’ve just released our annual Report to the Community and are excited to share these results: For the fiscal year 2018, which ended June 30, the Community Foundation  awarded a record $28.6 million in grants to 1,251 nonprofit organizations, taking the total grants awarded in […]

“My goal was to be able to make gifts to multiple nonprofit organizations, and the Community Foundation helped me draft the fund agreement and develop a strategy that would carry out my wishes exactly as I had envisioned,” says Mary Kabacinski of Appleton, who initiated a transfer from her IRA to the Community Foundation a […]

Logan Stuart is one of many local students who have benefited from a scholarship fund, stewarded by the Community Foundation. Last year we awarded $1.24 million from more than 200 scholarship funds to 434 students from 60 high schools. When people leave a legacy through the Community Foundation, a lot of work goes into making […]

When the call went out for donations to a lasting endowment fund for early childhood education to honor Dr. John and Sally Mielke, the community showed the love for the cause and the couple who has served the community for so long. Nearly 200 families, individuals, businesses and other organizations contributed to the John and […]

The Ruth and Pat Crawford Family Foundation was created by Pat and Ruth as a way for their charitable intentions and gifts to endure far beyond their natural lives. As time goes by, the people who knew Pat and Ruth Crawford will lessen, but the spirit of their generosity will continue to leave a lasting […]

By Peter Mariahazy, Community Foundation Board of Directors As a donor and volunteer of the Community Foundation for the Fox Valley Region, I’m proud of the organization’s impact that goes well beyond financial support. The Community Foundation adheres to the highest standards in supporting agencies that improve and strengthen the community as a whole. With […]

WHBY interview with United Way’s  Peter Kelly and Community Foundation’s Curt Detjen.