The Loop

One of the best parts of my job is being able to connect our donors with a community need that matches their interests, values, beliefs and convictions. The Emergency Shelter of the Fox Valley had changed its name to Homeless Connections and needed to use this time of rebranding to draw attention to the growing needs of […]

I just experienced what “being summoned to the White House” feels like. On Dec. 2, I and about 100 colleagues from across the country in the community foundation field, convened with White House officials for the first time. This event marked the 100th anniversary of community foundations. Our foundation ranks in size among the top […]

  The Community Clothes Closet unveiled its new addition recently at an open house, and what a difference the addition has made!

We have been eagerly awaiting the release of the latest “Wisconsin Gives Report” from the Donors Forum of Wisconsin, a Milwaukee-based industry group for grant makers on whose board I serve. It arrived this week and gives the Fox Cities plenty to feel good about. Outagamie is fourth among Wisconsin’s 72 counties in grants awarded, […]

The new Community Early Learning Center in the former St. Mary School building in Appleton is the focal point for making the most of that potential for children across the Fox Cities. The 2006 and 2011 Fox Cities LIFE Studies indicated a need for early intervention services for children age 5 and younger, along with […]

We saw an incredible year for charitable giving in the Fox Valley region, as highlighted in our 2014 Report to the Community for the year ending June 30, 2014. Grants awarded: a record $15.9 million granted to nearly 900 nonprofits. Contributions: second-most in our 28-year history with more than $31 million given by 1,900 generous individuals, […]

This week I, along with several of my colleagues, had the opportunity to represent the Community Foundation at the Council on Foundations’ Fall Conference for Community Foundations in Cleveland, Ohio. In addition to learning about the current landscape of community philanthropy and hearing from dynamic speakers, we were also celebrating a birthday. Actually a big […]

This week I participated in a Latino Simulation during a Community Health Action Team (CHAT) meeting. CHAT is a group of community leaders from several sectors who come together regularly and conduct “plunges” about specific issues that arise in our community. From the in-depth learning come some specific action plans. The Latino Simulation arose from […]

It’s a story we’ve shared before. The seemingly typical neighbor next door who works hard, lives simply and then surprises everyone with a large gift to charity upon their death. The millionaires next door in this particular example were George and Gussie Balck of Combined Locks and Arthur and Mary Leske of Neenah. Gussie and […]

Community leaders have been working tirelessly in recent months to secure the financial gifts necessary to invest in a Boys and Girls Clubs in Menasha. Contributors to the multi-million-dollar project include businesses and people who care about the future of young people in our community. And then there’s Frank Shattuck. Frank, a prominent Neenah architect […]