Foellinger Foundation

We would like to give a huge thank you to United Front for an amazing event and for the honor of being recognized with the 2024 “We Stand Together” Investor Award and the ‘Shared Humanity Award’ for our Board Member, Mike Moellering! These recognitions remind us of the power of unity and the dedication of our community’s leaders to creating a brighter future for all.

Calling all youth—do you feel inspired to give and help others? A new study from the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy finds that empathy among college students has increased among young Americans since 2008, almost rising to levels similar to the highs of the 1970s.

Today, we give Dawn her flowers??. After 34 years of heartfelt dedication to our mission and grantees, Dawn will be retiring at the end of December. Her journey with us began in 1990, and she quickly became more than an employee—she became family. A guiding light, Dawn has passionately upheld our founder's vision, bringing curiosity and a love of learning that has strengthened not only our foundation but also the entire philanthropic community. We could go on forever about our Dawn, but we’ll simply say: we will miss her dearly. Today is all about you, Dawn. We love you beyond measure and will treasure every remaining moment with you.?? . https://lnkd.in/guCvH_Yd

While housing is an emergency need that must be fulfilled for families in crisis, Just Neighbors Interfaith Homeless Network knows that housing alone doesn’t solve homelessness. That’s why they don’t just measure the number of stays or meals served. Their goal is to work with families to return them to self-sufficiency through fellowship and programming, and the outcomes they track demonstrate families’ progress toward that independence.

Every year, Volunteer Center Fort Wayne partners with more than 140 small- to medium-sized nonprofits in Allen County to connect them with individuals interested in volunteer opportunities. In addition to these relationships, the Volunteer Center also provides volunteer management training to the organizations. "Our work is important because most of these organizations do not have staff dedicated to volunteer management," explained Ani Etter, Executive Director of the Volunteer Center. "Many of them are wearing multiple hats. We prioritize helping them become better volunteer managers who can recruit, retain, and engage volunteers." Each year, the Volunteer Center presents a "check" to the City of Fort Wayne, representing the value of all the volunteer work done in the community. This check was presented to Mayor Tucker in July; the Volunteer Center contributed 108,530 volunteer hours to area programs and organizations in 2023, totaling $3,451,254. The figure was a 17% increase from 2022’s numbers. Volunteer Center nonprofit partner Associated Churches of Fort Wayne And Allen County was present at the event to share the impact on their organization. "Working with the Volunteer Center has been amazing," said Kelley Bawmann, Director of Development and Volunteer Engagement at Associated Churches. "They have a wide reach in the community to share all the available volunteer opportunities, and they continue to give me tips to write better descriptions for our volunteer opportunities. Our partnership has allowed our organization to meet the needs of families in the community. These wonderful volunteers donate, sort, and pack food for the pantries to serve those facing food insecurity; distribute essential items to keep babies and young children safe; and work with young moms as mentors. Without volunteers, meeting the need would be nearly impossible. I cannot imagine working in this nonprofit sector without the Volunteer Center."

REMINDER: The deadline for Foellinger's Youth Development Grants is approaching! Make sure to submit your application by November 4th at 5:00pm. For any questions you may have, check out the "How to Apply/Grant Resources" page on our website at foellinger.org/howtoapply, and if you don't find your answers there, please feel free to contact our Grants Team. Don’t Forget!

Yesterday, we announced Andrea Kendall, Board Chair of MLK Montessori School, as the 2024 recipient of the David A. Bobilya Excellence in Nonprofit Leadership Award! Andrea’s dedication to leadership and her commitment to MLK Montessori’s mission have made a lasting impact on the community. As part of this honor, MLK Montessori will receive a $25,000 operating grant. Read about Andrea and past participants on our website at: https://lnkd.in/gKVUEcs3 . #FoellingerFoundation #Bobilya

Foellinger Foundation was established with lifetime gifts from Helene Foellinger, proceeds from Helene and her mother Esther’s estates, and contributions from The News Publishing Company (which Helene was publisher of from 1936-1980) until The News-Sentinel was sold in 1980. Helene became publisher at just 25 years old, making her the youngest, and one of the few female, publishers in the country at the time. She would hold herself accountable to doing the job with integrity, earning the respect of her peers and her community—and we hold ourselves to the same standard as a Foundation. https://lnkd.in/gqzwq4dM

Our Nonprofit Megatrends Workshop is coming up next Wednesday, October 23rd. Learn more about nonprofit trends and how organizations can navigate the changes. Make sure to RSVP as quickly as possible, as space is limited. We can't wait to see you there! . https://lnkd.in/gZqACbwa

Matt and Jenna Wietfeldt were introduced to the Fort Wayne Children's Choir (FWCC) through friends who invited them to Do Re Mi, the FWCC's signature fundraising event. That evening, it became clear to them that the Fort Wayne Children's Choir's singular joy and focus is to change the lives of young people through music. They knew from that night on that they needed to be part of the organization. They signed up their oldest daughter, Halle, and her excitement about choir rubbed off on her siblings. Since then, they've enrolled their five daughters in the choir, and their two toddler boys attend First Steps in Music classes. The children's love for music has grown and transformed their lives. Matt said, "Our children are being filled with goodness and beauty that they can take into the rest of their lives. The love for music that Jenna and I share has been passed down to our children, sowing their own love for music. However, it’s the Fort Wayne Children’s Choir that has truly nurtured and deepened this affection even more. Our world, our country, is so divided right now. Music is one of those things that has the power to reorder our lives and our world. What these children are being given here in the Fort Wayne Children’s Choir is life-changing and formative beyond anything we could realize. Music has the power to unite and the power to heal. We are so grateful for the Fort Wayne Children's Choir." Thank you, FWCC, for providing these transformative opportunities to Allen County children and families!