Special Giving Edition - Resource newsletter (Volume 92)

Our Mission

The Northwest Minnesota Foundation invests resources, facilitates collaboration and promotes philanthropy to make the region a better place to live and work.

Board of Directors

Michelle Paquin, Chair

Deb Zak, Vice Chair

Cheri Gunvalson, Secretary

Todd Beckel, Treasurer

Jason Carlson

Antonio Franklin

Kaitlyn Grenier

Jill Johnson

Mike LaRoque

Connie Lindstrom

Bruce Reeves

Kristi Thorfinnson

Let’s go on an adventure, neighbor!

Close your eyes and imagine your community. The sun is on your face and you’re driving down Main Street. To your left, there are children swinging in the park. The local school is bustling with activity and our future generation is receiving quality education. You see neighbors pass by, going in and out of local businesses as they gather groceries and necessities for their home. You are clothed, fed, housed, educated, employed – and your community supports this life for everyone.

It’s like a clip from a movie – but it can be a reality. Imagine a fund that was large enough, so that every time one of your neighbors had an idea to better a certain aspect of their community, they could go to the fund.

This is the definition of a community foundation and it is what sets Northwest Minnesota Foundation apart from other local nonprofits. We don’t just focus on one thing, and that can be confusing. But if you take one message away from this, just know that the Northwest Minnesota Foundation is working to build better lives for everyone in this region.

We do this through the power of philanthropy.

We believe quality child care should be an option for all families. We believe its availability is necessary for continued economic development. We believe making your business stronger makes our community stronger. We believe safe, affordable housing should be available for all. We believe any instance of homelessness should be brief and non-recurring. And we believe in YOU.

Our efforts in building better lives are fueled by the support of our neighbors. Please make a gift to the Northwest Minnesota Foundation’s general endowment.

We know you care deeply about the community where you live. This is home – for you, for me, for all of us. Thank you for being passionate about lifting up our people and places by investing in what makes Northwest Minnesota great.

We promise to keep working side by side with the people, businesses, and communities so we can all thrive.

Johnson, Senior Philanthropy Officer

About this issue

This Special Giving Issue of the Resource aims to demonstrate how local giving supports NMF’s overall purpose of building better lives for everyone in Northwest Minnesota. The following pages illustrate how NMF builds community, not only through our discretionary grants and business supports but also through partnerships with our neighbors through community and component funds.

Northwest Minnesota Foundation | RESOURCE 2

Ashley

Kittson Roseau

Marshall

Pennington

Red Lake

Polk

Norman Mahnomen

Lake of the Woods

Beltrami Clearwater

Hubbard

RedLake Reservation

Reflections from Philanthropy

NMF celebrates Giving Circle inductees

The Northwest Minnesota Foundation is excited to present our latest inductees into the NMF Giving Circle.

These individuals and organizations have put their passions, ideas, and intentions into action by investing in our region’s people and places. Their support of Northwest Minnesota will leave a legacy to benefit generations yet to come.

With deep appreciation and gratitude, we recognize the following donors whose gifts have earned them induction into our Giving Circles.

Circle of Vision– contributing lifetime gifts of $100,000 or more:

• Kevin and Ann Cease

• Red River Valley Development Association

• Jim Stordahl (not pictured)

NMF’s Giving Circle has several rings of recognition. In addition to the Circle of Vision, the Circle of Community Champions recognizes those whose lifetime gifts total $500,000 or more, and Circle of Leadership recognizes those whose lifetime gifts total $1 million or more. There also is the Annual Circle of Giving to recognize those donors who give $500 or more annually to the NMF Endowment.

To view a full listing of our Giving Circle members, please visit www.nwmf.org/ways-to-give/nmf-giving-circle

You can join our Annual Circle of Giving with an annual contribution of $500 or more to the NMF Endowment. That’s just $40 a month to make an impact on the region in which you live! To donate, scan this code or visit www.nwmf.org/ways-to-give

Donors honored at fall event

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, our in-person celebration of our Giving Circle inductees has gotten off-track. This fall, we were finally able to personally recognize these donors at our in-person celebration event.

Donors who were celebrated, included:

Circle of Leadership

• Richard Hebert

Circle of Community Champions

• Joe and Amy Cass

• Susan I. Marvin

• Robert Naylor

Circle of Vision

• Kevin and Ann Cease

• Paul and Gloria Kaste

• Keith and Eva Olson

• Jim Stordahl

• Phil and Gloria Thompson

• Citizens State Bank of Roseau

• Sons of Norway Vinland Lodge 1-193

• Red River Valley Development Association

To view a full listing of our Giving Circle members, please visit www.nwmf.org/ways-to-give/nmf-giving-circle

Note: Please flip to Pages 6-7 to read more about our fall event!

Red River Valley Development Association

Kevin and Ann Cease and family

Building better lives throughout Northwest Minnesota

1. Neen’s Future in Space Scholarship. This is one example of the approximately 125 scholarship funds housed at NMF. Each scholarship has its own purpose and goal. Some support graduates of certain school districts or those involved in specific extracurriculars, others might support specific post-secondary career goals. The Neen’s Future in Space Scholarship is open to all students in the region who plan to study science, math, technology, or engineering with the preference for those entering a career in astrophysics, aeronautical engineering, or aerospace.

2. LifeCare Medical Center started the Roseau County Cancer Fund in 2022 as part of its philanthropic work. This fund provides funding for projects, programs, equipment, and services necessary to meet the needs of the community as they relate to cancer care and support of individuals being treated for cancer at LifeCare Medical Center or that reside in LifeCare’s service area. To date, they have raised over $110,000 to support the treatment of those with cancer in Roseau County.

3. The Lake of the Woods Drifters snowmobile club benefitted from $26,000 in economic development loans through the Lake of the Woods Industrial Development Fund to support the construction of a new building for storage and maintenance for their equipment. The Drifters snowmobile club maintains more than 200 miles of trails in their local area.

4. The Warren Area Community Fund advisory committee raised over $300,000 to update its 1965 pool. The goal of this project was to remove the existing bathhouse at the Warren Holiday Park Swimming Pool and replace with a modern handicapaccessible structure that is safe and convenient for all to use. The facility now provides a safe and enjoyable place to swim for people of all abilities.

5. The Middle River Legacy Center has supported the construction of a new playground for Middle River. A playground is not only one of the assets a community offers, but playgrounds are safe spaces where kids develop crucial physical, social, emotional and imaginative skills necessary to gain self-confidence,

improve coordination, and advance critical thinking capabilities. The Legacy Center committee raised over $30,000 for new playground equipment and new recycled plastic mulch for playground improvements –and there is more to come!

6. The Red Lake Youth Shelter opened in October 2022. The shelter serves up to 12 youth and young adults, open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Services and programming are based on Positive Youth Development, an evidence-based model that will be paired with culturally specific programming including ongoing ceremonies and lessons in Ojibwe culture and traditions. The Northwest Minnesota Foundation has granted $250,000 to the Boys & Girls Club, which serves as the fiscal agent for the youth shelter, to support internal capacity development, staff salary, and general support for the launching of the Red Lake Youth Shelter.

7. The Gold Childcare Center in East Grand Forks is planned to be a culturally supportive child care center. Fadumo Ahmed, who has provided in-home child care for several years in East Grand Forks, began conceptualizing a child care center a few years ago as a solution to meet an increasing need in the community for Somalian families. She could care for 14 kids in her home, but the center will have slots for 75 kids, from infancy through school-age.

8. Early grant support from the Thief River Falls Area Community Fund helped spur efforts to bring a program that builds self-esteem in adolescent girls to the local community. The BIO Girls program – BIO stands for Beautiful Inside + Out – was founded in 2013 in the Fargo/Moorhead area and has been spreading throughout rural communities in the Midwest ever since, driven by a mission to improve girls’ self-esteem through a 12-week program focused on self-empowerment and service to others. The inaugural session of BIO Girls in Thief River Falls culminated at the end of June with 40 girls from second through sixth grade running a 5K as dozens of supporters lined the route to encourage and cheer them on.

This shows a sampling of the projects and efforts that NMF has accomplished throughout the region in partnership with our donors, local funds, and community leaders

9. The winner of the 14th IDEA Competition was Megan Pederson, of Fertile, for her idea, Community Voice, a mobile app intended to serve communities by increasing community engagement, increasing transparency among community leaders, and connecting people to services.

10. Scholarships are crucial tools in supporting our young adults as they pursue their post-high school goals. An example of this are the “Fosston triplets,” Faith, Trent, and Lance Balstad, who all received support from scholarships housed at NMF. In FY22, NMF dispersed 242 scholarships totaling nearly $380,000 – all going to support students from this region.

11. The first-ever Rock Band Boot Camp was held this past summer at Headwaters Music and Arts in Bemidji as 10 musicians, aged 8 to 18 took part in the weeklong camp. Funds supporting the camp were allocated from the Bemidji Area Arts Endowment, one of the approximately 415 component funds housed at NMF.

12. The Northwest Minnesota Women’s Fund provided $4,000 to support Safety Prevention – Women in Norman County, a project from Crime Victim Advocate in Norman County. The project included the rental of office space, so crime victims could seek help in a safe location. It also included costs to hold National Night Out, a crime prevention event, as well as an education event for teens on sexual assault.

13. The Indigenous Parent Leadership Initiative celebrated the graduation of inaugural class at White Earth Nation in October as 11 “warrior women” stood before family and friends, sharing heartfelt, personal stories and expressing deep gratitude for the 21-week program that integrated teachings on child development, leadership, democracy skills, and Ojibwe culture. NMF’s Children & Families program provides supportive grant funding for IPLI.

14. The Hewitt Family Charitable Fund has granted $240,000 through more than 55 grants since

its inception in 2000, but last year Mark and Peggy Hewitt took a different approach with the goal to provide a stronger, more lasting impact. Last fall, the couple worked with NMF to facilitate an open grant round to support agencies working to remove barriers for youth and families in the Park Rapids and Nevis areas to achieve success. The grant round resulted in the disbursement of $83,000 in grants to seven organizations:

People, Places, Possibilities

The Northwest Minnesota Foundation celebrated People, Places, and Possibilities in September with a recognition event at the Fireside Grill & Patio in Bagley. At the event, NMF recognized donors, nonprofits, community leaders, and businesses for their exceptional efforts in making a lasting impact on the Northwest Minnesota region.

RUTH EDEVOLD AWARDS. These awards are named in honor of NMF’s founding director, Ruth Edevold, whose vision and leadership helped build the Northwest Minnesota Initiative Fund into a major regional force for all of Northwest Minnesota. These awards celebrate nonprofit organizational excellence and excellence in leadership.

Pictured are, from left, Margret Treuer, NMF Program Officer; from All Nations Rise / Indigenous Visioning, Barb Fabre, CEO, Erin Finn; Taylor Finn, and Beth Ann Dodds; and Ashley Johnson, NMF Senior Philanthropy Officer.

All Nations Rise / Indigenous Visioning, Ruth Edevold Award for Organizational Excellence. All Nations Rise / Indigenous Visioning aims to strengthen tribal communities, both rural and urban, by promoting and enhancing high quality early childhood programs that support children and families through a cultural lens.

Pictured are, from left, Dawn Ganje, NMF Director for Community Philanthropy; Keith Okeson, President/Chief Executive Officer of LifeCare; Erik Holmstrom, Development Coordinator at LifeCare; and Ashley Johnson, NMF Senior Philanthropy Officer.

LifeCare Medical Center, Ruth Edevold Award for Organizational Excellence. LifeCare is a regional provider of quality health care, recognized as a Top 100 Critical Access hospital in 4 of the last 5 years.

Pictured are, from left, Margret Treuer, Barb Houg, and Ashley Johnson.

Barb Houg, Ruth Edevold Award for Excellence in Leadership. The award recognized Barb’s career and efforts in promoting social and emotional learning throughout the region. Her career has spanned four decades in the nonprofit and social services field, including serving as the executive director of Peacemaker Resources since 2007.

Photo Credits: Alissa Martinson, of Moments By Alissa Photography

QUALITY OF PLACE AWARDS. These

awards recognize those who have developed community assets in any of the following four asset areas: structural, natural, social, and economic.

Pictured are, from left, Bud Kaney, Megan Hill, Tom Hill, and Tina Kaney, all from Bemidji Brewing.

Bemidji Brewing, Quality of Place Award for economic assets. In 10 years, Bemidji Brewing has grown from brewing 30 gallons of beer at a time to operating its brewery and Taproom with over 100,000 gallons of beer distributed annually throughout the Headwaters region of Minnesota and into North Dakota, all while having a long-standing commitment to building community through support of nonprofits and events.

Pictured are, from left, representatives of Gary Cares and NMF, Bryan Thronson, Wendy Bennefeld, Dawn Ganje, Karie Kirschbaum, Amanda Thronson, Anne Nalewaja, and Nate Dorr, NMF Vice President for Advocacy.

Gary Cares, Quality of Place Award for social assets. Gary Cares has a vision is to honor the Gary community with efforts to make it an even better place to live, work, play, and raise a family while showing respect for all the people of their community. Gary Cares promotes everything from recreation to youth engagement to social services.

COMMUNITY PHILANTHROPY AWARD.

This award recognizes a community fund that has gone above and beyond for their community. NMF has about 25 community funds in its family of funds, and each is dedicated toward championing their communities, providing grants targeted at making their community a better place to work and live.

Pictured are, from left, Dawn Ganje; John Hinkley, Valley General Store; and Karen White, NMF President.

Valley General Store in Halstad, Quality of Place Award for structural assets. John and Pauleen Hinkley were recognized for their response to the closure of Halstad’s only grocery store in 2018. Having first expanded their Cenex store to make available shelf space for grocery staples, they then built a new facility to house the hardware store, a grocery store, and an off-sale liquor store.

Pictured are, from left, Karen White; Mary Stauffenecker, Greenbush Area Community Fund; and Dawn Ganje.

Greenbush Area Community Fund has benefitted from the strong leadership of its advisory board over the years. The fund began with an anonymous donation of $500 in 2004 and currently has over $150,000 in assets. The community fund has dispersed over $80,000 through more than 60 grants into the community. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Greenbush Area Community Fund hosted virtual auctions and raised over $18,000.