A gift from Jay and Dorothy Egge helps grow Sioux Falls workforce
WOMEN HELPING WOMEN
For a century, The Woman’s Alliance has made a quiet difference
FEATURE STORY
FAMILY PHILANTHROPY
A passion for Sioux Falls inspires Craig and Pat Lloyd
GIVING FOR GOOD Donors make LifeScape’s new children’s services campus a reality
Every generation, thoughtful people step forward to make a difference. Through generosity, vision, influence and passion, they change their communities for the better.
Philanthropy - the kind that celebrates where you’re from and why you love it - is at the heart of what we celebrate this season. At the Sioux Falls Area Community Foundation, we know giving for good, forever, starts at home.
A LEGACY OF GIVING
Craig and Pat Lloyd were flying from Ft. Myers, Fla., where they were visiting his parents, home to Sioux Falls one winter evening in the mid-1970s.
As it often happens during any winter travel in this part of the world, the weather turned, and the plane was diverted to Sioux City. New to the region, Craig and Pat waited with the other passengers, their baby girl in Pat’s arms, wondering when and how they would get home.
Eventually, someone offered the Lloyds a ride, which they accepted.
Their driver was an attorney named Marvin Bailin , and he had an idea.
It was to develop a broad-based community foundation to which charitable gifts and bequests could be made. An o rganization that could help Sioux Falls weather difficult times and unite people behind a common vision of what the community could be.
“This will be the future of your generation,” Craig Lloyd remembers Bailin telling hi m.
Shortly after, the Sioux Falls Area Community Foundation was created.
By 1984, the first three funds were established, and by 1988, assets at the Foundation exceeded $1 million and more than $21,000 was granted to community organizations.
Today? The Foundation’s assets exceed $360 million, and it has awarded more than $313 million in grants since 1984.
We wouldn’t be here – and celebrating 40 years – if it weren’t for not only visionary leaders in Sioux Falls but inspired philanthropists willing to invest in this community. People like the Lloyds – who have decided their family legacy will include dedicated giving – in perpetuity – to this city they love.
Or Brad Grossenburg , who joined the Board of Directors in 1989 and then continued serving in various capacities, right up until this year. Advisors and attorneys who see the value in directing their clients’ giving through the Sioux Falls Area Community Foundation.
The Egge family – who knew giving through the Foundation could help educate future generations of mechanics and nurses. Or the Woman’s Alliance , which has supported women and girls for more than a century.
“What they did for this community, I don’t know if the community will ever understand,” Craig Lloyd said of those early Foundation founders.
What will be your legacy in Sioux Falls?
Create it with us, your trusted partner in philanthropy.
— The Foundation Team
THE COVER: A historical view of Phillips Avenue in 1910.
FROM THE DEPOT
Looking over the Illinois Central Depot, now home to the Sioux Falls Area Community Foundation, and the Big Sioux River in downtown Sioux Falls, ca. 1891.
‘EVERY DAY, THEY HAD A PURPOSE’
Jay and Dorothy Egge’s gift educates Sioux Falls’ future workforce
Photo courtesy of Southeast Technical College.
Todd Egge settles in to talk about his parents.
In his home just east of Sioux Falls, windows overlooking trees and grasses the shades of yellow from pale to golden that make up fall in South Dakota, he is surrounded by family photos as he talks about Jay and Dorothy Egge.
Quickly, the memory of their goodness nearly overwhelms him.
“The thing that goes unnoticed about them is the hours of time they spent volunteering,” Todd Egge says. He looks down at a yellow legal pad covered in handwritten notes and begins to read, naming organizations from church to school board to committees for everything from nursing to 4-H to automotive to racing.
Jay and Dorothy Egge could somehow find extra hours in each day, and they filled them with service to others, their children say.
Consider the Splitrock Township Volunteer Fire Department, where Jay Egge served for nearly 50 years, more than half as fire chief. Todd Egge is incredulous as he talks about his father helping in the aftermath of a fatal tornado – one that was powerful enough that shreds of paper from the home it leveled were found as far away as Luverne, Minnesota.
Watching his parents and their willingness to always help others instilled in him the same values. Just like his father, Todd Egge is a volunteer firefighter. And like his dad and his grandfather, Joe Egge is, too, and also served as fire chief.
“Doing this with my son is very rewarding,” Todd Egge says, calling the family volunteerism a testament to how he was raised. “It’s exceptionally gratifying to see these generations following in my parents’ footsteps – their children, their grandchildren and great-grandchildren. That’s pretty amazing.”
The family business – Jay Egge Automatic Service – also is passed down through the generations. Started by the Egges in 1977, Todd Egge ran it after his dad and now his son, Joe, runs the business. In his lifetime, Jay Egge was passionate about mentoring the next generation of automotive mechanics.
In the 1980s, Southeast Technical College invited Jay Egge to join the 12-member advisory board that oversees the school’s automotive technology program. He served with that group until his death in 2001.
Dorothy Egge, who was a registered nurse, cared deeply about taking care of others.
“My mom would go to nursing homes for other church members when she was into her 90s,” Todd Egge said,
laughing. “She would still drive – when she hit 92, she said she was going to only drive in east Sioux Falls.”
He says his parents led by example.
“They had a purpose. Every day they got out of bed, they had a purpose for that day,” Todd Egge said. “And to lead by that example, if you didn’t pick it up, you weren’t paying attention.”
Photo courtesy of The Egge Family.
Photo courtesy of The Egge Family.
Meeting community needs
The couple were married for more than 50 years. After Jay passed, Dorothy ensured their shared commitment would live on by arranging a gift to benefit future generations. Through this planned gift, the Jay and Dorothy Egge Family Endowment was created at the Sioux Falls Area Community Foundation. True to the causes they valued most, distributions will support education in fields like automotive technology and nursing.
Todd Egge notes that the legacy his parents left serves continuing community needs – automotive mechanics and nurses are two high-demand fields in Sioux Falls, and their gift allows more students to choose those career paths.
“They watched Sioux Falls grow to what it is,” Todd Egge said, noting their commitment to the community. “It’s Jay and Dorothy and the footsteps they put down. They would be so happy.”
Other family members agree. Dorothy and Jay had six children – Bonnie, John, Darlene, Alan, Marilyn and Todd.
“Our parents strived to raise educated, independent and self-sufficient individuals,” they said in a statement. “Sharing their success by supporting up-and-coming young people illustrates their positive wishes for others.”
Todd Egge talks about the value of knowing your community – of walking into a restaurant and seeing familiar and friendly faces, of having your name on the door of your family business, of feeling proud of generations of hard work and accomplishment.
“My wife and I, we both say we learned unconditional love from our parents,” Todd Egge said. “It’s had a great impact on my life, and the things we engage in and how it goes back to our community. I’ve heard a lot about how you receive a lot more by giving, and it’s so true in life.”
His five siblings agree. “Witnessing their involvement in the organizations that mattered to them has carried through to their children,” they said. “Mom and Dad would not think twice about giving back to others. For the siblings, it’s a model worth following.”
Value of endowments
Mary Kolsrud, chief philanthropy officer for the Sioux Falls Area Community Foundation, said the Egges are the perfect example of how philanthropy can help build a brighter future while honoring the past.
“Through their endowment fund, their spirit of generosity continues. It’s a beautiful way to continue to give in the community they loved,” Kolsrud said. “Jay and Dorothy’s legacy is truly a reflection of the values
they lived by – a lasting example of giving back and caring for others.”
Stephen Williamson, director of the Southeast Technical College Foundation, said the the Egge Family Endowment was “a wonderful surprise.”
“The fact that they included us in their estate plans was humbling,” Williamson said, noting that Jay Egge and his family have been influential at Southeast Tech. “It’s a name that is not only memorable, but also known.”
Williamson said endowed funds really are a gift that keeps on giving.
“Endowed funds are perpetuating,” Williamson said. “They are always growing and always paying out. These are dollars you can count on every year when you are balancing your scholarship budget. There’s a certain comfort in that.”
Wiliamson said about 150 students are enrolled in some sort of automotive technology program at Southeast Tech, which has a total enrollment of about 2,600 students. Most of the students at Southeast Tech come from middle to low-income families.
“Scholarship dollars make a difference in their life,” Williamson said. “When a student gets a scholarship, at that moment, they know they’ve done something. Someone is
investing in them. I’ve never met a student yet who didn’t walk a little taller, with a little more confidence after they get a scholarship”
Williamson said the Egge Family Endowment scholarships will help recruit students into the auto tech program. He loves that they gave to a trade they were so passionate about.
“People like Jay Egge and the Egge family help move the ball forward, so we can continue to serve students in this region,” he said. “Their gift perpetuates what their personal mission was, and what was so important to them, and we can be part of that. That makes me happy.”
Honoring a legacy
Todd Egge pauses for a moment. He looks again at the list of committees and boards and volunteer activities his parents engaged in. He talks about how people support each other – kids and grandkids, cousins and friends. Being so involved can be overwhelming – but when Todd Egge watches members of his extended family give of their time, it reminds him of his parents.
“They taught all their children to follow their example,” he said. “And, in return, it feels good to honor their legacy.
Photo courtesy of Southeast Technical College.
A LEGACY OF SERVICE
Longtime volunteer Brad Grossenburg has been instrumental to the success of the Community Foundation
Brad Grossenburg has been part of the Sioux Falls Area Community Foundation for nearly as long as the Foundation has existed.
It started when he was a soccer referee, and a fellow referee’s wife was the executive director of the Foundation. That was Rosemary Draeger, and she had some advice for Grossenburg.
“She said, ‘You need to get on board with this organization,’” he says now, laughing.
So, he did, serving on the Foundation’s Board of Directors from 1989 to 2000, and on the legal committee from 2001 to 2024.
“When I started, there was $1 million in the endowment, so it was pretty small at the time,” Grossenburg said from his office at Woods, Fuller, Shultz & Smith in downtown Sioux Falls. “It’s a pretty amazing organization now. It’s grown so much.”
Volunteers make the difference
Early in its history, the Foundation was an all-hands-on-deck organization.
“The people who helped us get started so strongly believed in the need for a community foundation,” said Mary Kolsrud, chief philanthropy officer, noting that the legal committee provided volunteer counsel to the fledgling Foundation. “We so heavily relied on our volunteers. And then some incredible board members like Brad stayed with us as a volunteer for 35 years.”
Early board members passed on an opportunity to merge with the South Dakota Community Foundation, instead believing that hyperlocal focus was the right direction.
“That sense of place is a selling point for people,” Grossenburg said. “It matters to them.”
As a trust and estate lawyer, Grossenburg said it’s important to build a relationship and introduce philanthropy, in a broad sense and how it ties into a family’s vision and values.
Andy Patterson, CEO of the Foundation, said the community benefits when people like Grossenburg help their clients connect generosity to purpose.
“Brad has partnered with the Foundation and referred clients here for more than 35 years,” Patterson said. “It’s because of people like him, who put their faith in the Foundation, that we have been able to grow. And not just as an organization – but as a community. Sioux Falls is what it is because of people like Brad, his clients and others who are so passionate about the city.”
One advantage of the Foundation is making giving easier for donors, Grossenburg said. “We have a lot of Donor Advised Funds. That’s to help donors – they want to write one check and then, based on their wishes, the Foundation helps distribute to the causes and organizations they care about.”
Another is the expertise the Foundation provides, and the flexibility it allows.
“It’s a great way for people to make charitable gifts,
‘It’s because of people like him, who put their faith in the Foundation, that we have been able to grow. And not just as an organization - but as a community.’
Andy Patterson Chief Executive Officer
whether during their lifetime or at death,” he said.
Patterson said Grossenburg was instrumental in shaping the Foundation.
“He served on our legal committee from the beginning, and he really helped set a lot of our policies, design our funds and helped us navigate the changing tax laws,” Patterson said. “It’s allowed us to have relevant, nimble offerings for donors.”
Plus, his consistency and expertise helped embed the Foundation’s approach – which is to truly honor and prioritize donor intent.
“That helped create trust and helps alleviate worries –people know we will follow through on their charitable intentions,” Patterson said, crediting the deep trust Grossenburg built with his clients and how he introduced them to the Foundation.
“It wouldn’t have happened without his introduction and faith that we would take care of them,” Patterson said.
‘Charitably inclined’ community
Grossenburg said people in Sioux Falls want to give
back. “I don’t know many communities this size who are as charitably inclined as this community,” he said. “I hope the mentality of this community doesn’t change – that we continue to be willing to help.”
He pauses for a minute.
“When I came to town, Sioux Falls and Sioux City were the same size,” he said. “Everyone thought Sioux City would be the one that would continue to grow. But it hasn’t changed. Sioux Falls grew.”
Both cities are on the river, on the interstate, with similar demographics.
Grossenburg attributes the strength of Sioux Falls to the vision of community leaders, business owners and families.
“Leaders in this community want to move ahead,” he said. “We wouldn’t have had so many things in this community if people weren’t willing to work together. It’s amazing. It’s a great place to give your money.”
Photo courtesy of Woods, Fuller, Shultz & Smith.
Photo
A VISION FOR FAMILY GIVING
Craig and Pat Lloyd have a passion for Sioux Falls
If you ask Craig Lloyd what to bring to a meeting, the answer isn’t going to be “two peanut butter sandwiches and a garbage bag.”
But that’s exactly what Steve Metli, then city planner for the City of Sioux Falls, told him to pack for a meeting in 1974.
“That’s how I’m going to meet this guy,” Craig Lloyd says. “I thought I was going to take him out for lunch. Instead, we went and picked up trash along the Big Sioux River.”
Craig sits back in his chair and takes a moment to remember that day – and what downtown Sioux Falls looked like more than 50 years ago. That same riverfront where he and Metli walked and talked is just outside his office in The Steel District, the mixed-use development built by Lloyd Companies and housing its headquarters.
Now, housing, businesses and amenities fill in the space, much of it visible through the floor-to-ceiling windows in Craig’s office.
New restaurants and shops have opened. Dogs soon will have another downtown dog park. Jacobson Plaza at Falls Park is taking shape. There’s the sprawling lawn of Levitt at the Falls.
“I’ll tell you, I’ve learned a lot about ice,” Craig laughs, as Lloyd Companies builds out many of the projects within his view.
He returns to thinking about Metli.
“He cared so much about this community, and he wanted to see it look better,” Craig says. “He had such a dream. The city is what it has become because of him and so many other great visionaries.”
Inspired by others
Craig and Pat Lloyd are humble people.
In the middle of a conversation, they often pause to offer
gratitude. To the people in Sioux Falls who trusted them. To the community leaders who welcomed them. To each other, for the times that were good and the times that were hard, raising a family and building a business, and the teamwork it takes to weather both.
“Others really inspired our giving,” Pat says. “And if we can help inspire others, that will be so meaningful to us.”
They never shy away from giving others credit for shaping the city and their own personal philosophy on philanthropy.
Craig first credits his father – who he calls a lifelong tither –for instilling the importance of philanthropy. “If you make a buck, you tithe a dime,” he says. “Sometimes he was giving away money we didn’t have, but he was diligent about it.”
In Craig and Pat’s early professional career, there were a few influential businessmen and women who encouraged the fledgling Lloyd Companies to give back to the community.
But it might have been an encounter over breakfast one Sunday morning, when the Lloyds found themselves across the table from Carl and Marietta Soukup.
“They started telling us about the different things they had done in the community,” Pat says. “They weren’t bragging. But it was eye-opening; they were passionate about what they were doing and how they loved being a part of giving back. I can remember getting tearful as I listened to the stories they were sharing.”
The Lloyds had been somewhat involved before this, but not in any streamlined way.
“I had never considered philanthropy on that kind of scale before,” Pat says.
“We didn’t have a plan,” Craig agrees. “But they set the stage for us to think about it, and it’s part of our budget CONTINUED: PAGE
Photo by Emily Spartz Weerheim.
today. It’s intentional. If anybody asks what the turning point was – that was it. Making our giving intentional.”
That intentionality became part of the fabric of Lloyd Companies, where now employees pitch their favorite nonprofits for the organization to give to every year.
But it also became part of how the family approached giving. And it wasn’t always easy.
Family philanthropy
Pat talks about a memorable gift, early in their family life. The girls were in grade school and junior high. The holidays were approaching.
“We told our daughters we weren’t going to buy them gifts that year, instead we were going to help a family in town,” she says. “And, oh, the girls just cried.”
But Craig and Pat knew they would understand once they began the process of giving. They shopped for the family, with a list of needs. The girls were excited, Pat says, and they had the gifts wrapped and sent to the family.
A bit later, a thank you letter arrived in the mail.
“Gosh, I think it was three pages long,” Pat says. The letter detailed how the gifts had been a blessing, and how the new clothes and boots offered some confidence – now proud of how they were dressed.
“It’s our Christmas story,” Pat says, pausing as her eyes fill with tears. “You could just picture the father, especially, because the wife wrote about him, and how he looked at her and said, ‘I think we can go to the family Christmas this year.’ It’s sad to imagine someone would be feeling that low.”
They still have the letter, and they read it every year with the family at Christmas.
It’s a reminder that giving back is part of the fabric of their family.
But their giving has evolved over the years. Like many people, they gave often to causes their friends were passionate about.
“We were very disorganized,” Pat says.
As they looked to be more strategic in their personal giving – just as they were with Lloyd Companies, they turned to the Sioux Falls Area Community Foundation for guidance.
Now, the Lloyd family has a roadmap for where they want to give – and how it will continue long after they’re gone, all aligned to a family mission statement. Pat calls it a work in progress.
Photos by Emily Spartz Weerheim.
They have regular family meetings to build consensus. To help instill a sense of place and remember how much Sioux Falls has meant to the Lloyds.
“We’ve been trying to help our family understand the importance of this community and how good it’s been to our business and our family,” Pat says.
They’ve learned along the way that when they are more focused in their giving, more strategic, they also can make a bigger difference. Several scattered gifts become one larger one, dedicated to causes they care about, including empowering youth in our community.
“Sioux Falls will forever benefit from what they’ve done,” says Mary Kolsrud, chief philanthropy officer for the Foundation.
The Lloyds have a Donor Advised Fund at the Foundation that allows them to streamline their giving during their lifetime. They have also made plans for a gift through their estate, creating an endowment that will continue to support the community and be guided by future generations of the Lloyd family.
“They are all about family,” Kolsrud says. “They want their legacy to reflect that by ensuring their children and future generations can continue to give back to the community they love through their family endowment at the Foundation.”
The Foundation helps the Lloyds stay true to their family’s philanthropic mission by facilitating family discussions.
“We can help families come together to explore their shared values and passions and create a giving plan that reflects those values while benefitting the community,” Kolsrud says. “That legacy can live out in this wonderful way.”
A giving community
“Sioux Falls has always been a very giving community, and it’s part of the culture,” Craig says. He tells businesses coming to Sioux Falls that they will be asked to give back.
“You’ll be asked more here than any place else to give. But you’ll also get more in return if you give back.”
Again, he and Pat glance outside. The space beneath his window is all being developed because of philanthropy.
The Steel District itself is a private development.
The line between business and private sectors has always been thin in Sioux Falls, where people continue to come together to build things such as the Arc of Dreams, Washington Pavilion, the zoo, and so much more.
“It’s not because of us,” Craig says of this solidarity in the community. He names families who built the city with their giving. Families everyone may or may not know. Too many to mention. “I always say, if you have a good thing you want to raise money for, that involves children or the
betterment of the community, there’s nothing we can’t go raise money for.”
He laughs and tells the story of projects that started with one ask and ended with a much bigger one. From the concrete to pour the base of the Arc of Dreams to fundraising for the hockey arena at Augustana University.
Craig grows serious for a moment.
“The community came together, and I think we see that time and time again,” he says. “People care. They care to make it better because they know it’s better for business and better for their family.”
It’s important that the business community and families continue to unite for Sioux Falls, he says. “Whatever you can give, just give it,” he says. “You won’t miss it. It takes all of us.”
He called it the collective power of Sioux Falls.
“We are grateful for the success of Lloyd Companies,” Craig says. “We don’t take it for granted. When you are involved in building a community, the community then keeps building on itself. We need those business leaders who are here for today and tomorrow, and to train that next generation.”
For Craig and Pat, it’s part of their personal philosophy.
“We’re just here for a speck of time,” Craig says. “Philanthropy takes it all to the next generation.”
LEGACY SOCIETY
Brian and Denise Aamlid
Rick Albrecht
Loren* and Mavis Amundson
Gilbert and Connie Backlund
Kathy Bangasser
Rich and Melania Barnes
LaNeil and Darrel Bartell
Gerald and Marge Barth
Tom Batcheller
Vinny and Marcia Battista
Kevin and Robin Baum
Miles and Lisa Beacom
Randell and Linda Beck
Yvonne Behrends
Lois Bellows
Gerald and Brenda Beninga
Arnie and Arlene Berkeland
Patricia Billion
Brian and Janet Bird
Joel and Dar Blanchard
Norman and Melanie Bliss
John and Judy Blomquist
Kerry and Donna Boekelheide
Burleigh and Betty Boldt
Loren and Sheila Boyens
Mark and Stephanie Boyens
Scott and Beth Boyens
David and Cathy Brechtelsbauer
Dick and Sue* Brown
Jennifer and Jon Bunkers
Gene and Ann Burrish
Gary and Nancy Busselman
Bill and Lynne Byrne
Todd Byrne
Penny Carlisle
Walt and Martha Carlson
Garth and Valerie Caselli
Joseph and Amy Cass
Ray and Sandy Cheney
Paul and Julie Choudek
Lauren and LaDonna*
Christensen
Reid and Ruth
Christopherson
Mick and Donna Cornelius
Dan and Janet Costello
Steve and Betty Crim
Jim* and Pat Croston
Susan and Phil Crum
Shawn and Lynn Culey
Rich* and Sharon Cutler
Ed and Bridget Czarnecki
Nate and Mary Dally
Tim and Lee Anne Dardis
Laura Davis Keppen
Doug De Gooyer
Darrold and Linda Dean
Jean Delbridge
Terri Dial
Dale and Marcia Dobberpuhl
Bob and Margaret*
Doescher
Bill and Rosemary Draeger
Bill Eakes
Mark Edeen
Steve and Kris Egger
Bruce and Laurie Eide
Roe and Pat Eidsness
Cindy Anson Eilers
Donald* and Joan Eitrheim
Norman and Clarice* Eitrheim
Bill and Lisa Erck
Larry* and Shirley Erickson
Todd and Christie Ernst
Paul Everson
Drs. Kate Florio and Larry Burris
Keith and Mary Fortin
Mike and Sally Foss
Susan Foster
Trygve and Marie Fredrickson
Ed and Norma Fricke
Pat and Susanne Gale
Rich and Mary Garry
Steve and Alli Garry
Paul and Claire Gillaspey
Gregg and JJ Gohl
Linda Gores
Stan and Stacey Graber
Lezlee Graham
Bill and Renae Green
Russ and Carol Greenfield
Brad Grossenburg
Candy Hanson
Sally Hanson
Virginia Harrington
Verna Hauge
Jeff* and Sheila Hazard
Linda Heckenlively
Joel Heikes
Lloyd Helgeland
Norine Hemping
John and Ann Henkhaus
Chuck and Janelle Hiatt
Dan and Beth Hindbjorgen
Alan and Brenda Hodgson
Linda Hoeck
Bruce and Connie Hoefer
Darlys and Catherine Hofer
Alex and Kristin Hofkamp
Elaine Hoftiezer
Don* and Gayle Hooper
Dan and Nancy Horner
Marian Horr
Mike and Bunny* Howes
Tom and Melissa Howes
Mike, Cindy, and Kylie Huether
Rick Huffman
Jay and Jane Huizenga
Rick and Glenys Hull
Garry and Dianne Jacobson
Dale and Diane Jans
Judy Jasper
Tim and Michele Jensen
Kevin and Karen Jergenson
Gene and Cynthia Jones
Jeff and Doreen Jorgenson
Kira Kimball
John* and Enid Kinkead
Dan and Arlene Kirby
Joe and Jenny Kirby
Tess Kirby
Greg and Pam* Kneip
De Knudson
Arlen* and Marcia Knutson
Paul and Ruth* Kokenge
Collin and Carrol Kollars
Elizabeth Kopf
Marilyn and Scott Korsten
Lyle and Kay Kranzler
Bryan Krause
Peggy Kuehl
Catherine Lacey
Greg and Kaye LaFollette
Dave Larsen and Karen Heiling
Lee* and Karen Larsen
Linda Larson
Sarah Richardson Larson and Jeff Larson
Jim* and Jan Leffler
Ron and Joy Lind
Ralph Lindner
Bill and Lorrae Lindquist
Craig and Pat Lloyd
Irv* and Helen Loeffler
Scott Loftesness
George and Kay Lundberg
John and Jeanelle Lust
Lou* and Helen Madsen
Melanie Madsen
Pamela Madsen
Vicki Madsen
Lisa and Aaron Maguire
Gordie and Mary Mairose
Jeffrey and Renae Malone
Todd and Terry Marks
Linda and David Marquardt
Tom and Beth Masterson
Ron Mattice
Pierce and Barbara McDowell
Tom and Susan McDowell
Gene and Susan McGowan
Mary McQuillen
Charles and Donna Mehlhaf
Doug Metcalf
Gary and Cindy Meyer
Ron Mielke
Dusty and Kathy Miller
Pearl Miller
Dick Molseed
Mary Montoya
Kim Morstad
Stephen and Mary Lynn Myers
Dave and Pat Nadolski
Carl and Janet Naessig
Liz Navratil
Bill and Margie* Nelsen
Dave and Becky Nelson
Judy Nissen
Mark and Gretchen Noordsy
Harriet and Harlan* Norem
Patricia Norin
Ray* and Margaret Novak
Jim and Carol Oakland
Dave and Barb Ohme
Joe and Nancy Olsen
Suzanne Olsen
Tom and Jennifer Ortman
Daryl and Penny Paclik
Jeff and Carol Parker
Howard* and Lou Ann Paulson
Doug and Sandra Pay
Steve and Marianne Perkins
Dave Petersen
Kent and Cindy Peterson
Anthony Pizer and Jessica Aguilar
Don and Ann Platt
Jay and Michelle Powell
Bob Preloger
Terry and Susan Prendergast
Tate Profilet and Mary DeJong
Robin Prunty
Robert* and Pam Putnam
Kirby and Carrie Quamen
John and Eileen Quello
Tom Raap
Dean*, Jan, Darren, and Angie Radach
Marlene Rance
Susan Randall and Mark Sanderson
Shireen Ranschau
Patricia Reagan
Tom Reaves
Jay Reeve and Katherine Peterson
Lois Rem
Donald Reusch* and Larry Schut
Karl and Gayleen Riedemann
Charles and Char Rokusek
Rex and Margie Rolfing
Bruce and Sunday Roozenboom
Dave and Tammy Rozenboom
Phil and Jimmie Rysdon
Rodney Sather
Paul and Koni Schiller
Ralph and Carol Schnabel
Tom* and Kathrine Schnabel
Connie Schnaible
Julie and Paul Schnaible
Scott and Natalie Schneidermann
Al Schoeneman
Scott Schoenen and Paul Weiss
Karen Schreier
Judi and Jim* Schwerin
Don and Harriet Scott
Jim and Ann Scoular
George and Joan Sercl
Helen Short
Deborah and James Siemens
John Simko
Char Skovlund and Laura Berg
Fred and Sandra Slunecka
Roger and Jane Solheim
Marvin* and Darlene Sopko
Leroy and Elisabeth Stadem
Jeff and Shelley Stingley
Jeff and Reneece Strand
James and Diane Sturdevant
Dick and Kathy Sweetman
Jerry and Mary Pat Sweetman
Mel and Loo Thaler
Bob and Joan Thimjon
Chris and Kristen Thorkelson
Margaret A. Thornton
Lisa Tidemann
David and Mary Tidwell
Karen and Don Tiede
John* and Hen Timmer
Larry and Suzanne Toll
Jo Trankle
Karen Bates Trimble
Robyn Tyler
Jon and Suzanne Veenis
Larry and Beverly Volek
John and Mona Wade
Dick* and Roxie Waggoner
Mike and Paula Wagner
Caryn and Eric Wallace
Dean and Sharon Wartenbee
Craig and Gwen Wawers
Nancy Weber
Karl Wegner* and Margaret Cash Wegner
Kirke and DaNeil Wheeler
Merle and CeCe Wollman
Tom* and Lynne Zimmer
Nate and Jennifer Zoelle
* Deceased
Legacy Society
Those who establish a planned gift at the Sioux Falls Area Community Foundation become members of our Legacy Society, a distinguished group of leaders investing in the future of our community. We are grateful to them for trusting us to carry out their philanthropic and visionary intentions.
GIVING FOR GOOD
Generous donors make LifeScape’s new children’s services campus in Sioux Falls a reality
A massive project by LifeScape will allow more people to receive services in Sioux Falls.
The $98 million project, slated to be completed in December 2026, builds a children’s services campus in northwestern Sioux Falls and allows the nonprofit to expand nearly all of its offerings, improving access for children in the region.
For Jessica Wells, president of the LifeScape Foundation, the project provides hope, dignity and meaning for the people and families they serve.
LifeScape provides residential services, behavioral and complex medical care, specialty school services, and inpatient, outpatient, and outreach therapy for children.
The current campus tucked into a residential neighborhood in central Sioux Falls isn’t ideal.
“We did as much modification as we could,” Wells said.
The 200,000-square foot building is being built on 10 acres on North Career Avenue and West 34th Street North.
The facility will include a 72-bed children’s residential area, a 25% larger specialty school, an 18-bed pediatric rehabilitation hospital, expanded inpatient and intensive
Photo courtesy of LifeScape.
outpatient therapy space, gymnasium, pool, therapy pool, and some administrative offices.
“Just to be able to look at families and say, ‘OK, your child is recovering from an accident, and they have to relearn how to walk, and how to button their shirts and feed themselves,’ and knowing we have the room to accommodate that skill reacquisition feels so good,” Wells said.
Beyond the new space is additional technology –everything from video and audio to stay connected when family is far away to remote consulting for physicians and smart rooms where a child can use eye movement to dim the lights or turn on the television, for example, offering more independence and control over their environment.
And, of course, a place to play. The new campus has playground spaces in the center, surrounded by buildings, keeping children safe – without fences that can feel sterile.
“It’s a completely inclusive, great space,” Wells said. There are several spaces – from a high activity area to quieter spaces to gardens.
‘Better together’
About a decade ago, Children’s Care Hospital merged with South Dakota Achieve to form LifeScape.
‘We did as much modification as we could. We were landlocked, and the pipes and the boilers are circa 1952.’
Jessica Wells LifeScape
“We saw there would be this higher need,” Wells said, noting that children with challenging behaviors was a growing segment. “And there weren’t enough options to support adults with Autism and other behavior disorders and those with complex medical needs in town. So, we thought, we can do this better together.”
LifeScape continues improving existing adult day services facilities and residential homes. It was soon after when the newly formed LifeScape realized they would quicky outgrow their current children’s campus.
“We were landlocked, and the pipes and the boilers are circa 1952,” Wells said. “Things were getting old, and we had just about hit the end of being able to repair them.”
The building itself opened in 1952 in response to the polio epidemic, and it just wasn’t configured to meet current needs. And while Children’s Care and South Dakota Achieve served different populations, it was really just a continuum of care – and a new building would need to address those ages and stages.
Photo courtesy of LifeScape.
‘The Community Foundation does such great work, and they have such integrity. Our community trusts them, and it’s a good option for donors.’
Jessica Wells LifeScape
Both organizations grew out of families coming together to say their children – young and young adult –deserved a dignified place to live, go to school and find independence.
“It was family advocacy,” Wells said. “The community steps in and says, we, as a community, can solve this. It was a lot of community partners coming together.”
But the need kept growing. Advances in medical care mean kids with complex medical needs are living longer, and there are more than 450 families on waitlists for interventions such as Autism services.
In around 2018, LifeScape began exploring what an expansion would look like. The COVID-19 pandemic caused some delays but also provided valuable perspective on the design. For example, the initial design would have made
it difficult to quarantine sick individuals. Other barriers – including costs and inflation – made the organization realize they needed to regroup.
It was back to the drawing board for acquiring property, design – and funding. The price tag skyrocketed. They considered making slow renovations on their central Sioux Falls property – tearing down one building and putting up another, piece by piece, stage by stage.
But it just wasn’t feasible.
‘Count me in’
Once again, the generosity of Sioux Falls came through.
Someone stepped forward with a parcel of land in northwestern Sioux Falls. He sold it to LifeScape for an amount they could afford. And suddenly, the project was possible again.
“I am in awe of how many donors have said, ‘count me in,’” Wells said. “Mr. Denny Sanford was our lead donor – his first gift made the project possible.”
Others, such as Dave and Christine Billion, have a long history with LifeScape.
Photo courtesy of LifeScape.
“His family was one who said in 1948, ‘we can do this as a community,’” Wells said.
Wells said LifeScape has built an immense amount of trust with the community – and their mission inspires generosity. “It’s very humbling,” she said.
LifeScape has an endowment held at the Sioux Falls Area Community Foundation, which helps support operations in a sustainable, dependable way.
Plus, many people give to the organization through their Donor Advised Funds, said Mary Kolsrud, chief philanthropy officer for the Foundation.
“We see our donors step up time and time again,” Kolsrud said. “We have seen so much generosity in this community, not only through something like the Journey to Hope campaign, but also through planned gifts to LifeScape. This kind of giving is instrumental to the success of these organizations, and it really represents how powerfully our community feels about having these services close to home.”
Wells agrees.
“In Sioux Falls, we have a lot of families where philanthropy is important to them, and continues to be for generations,” Wells said. “That is so exciting to see, and we are so fortunate.”
Wells said the Foundation and the reliability of the endowment has been integral.
“We have had a long relationship with the Community Foundation,” Wells said. “That partnership has been an important part of our culture.”
She said it helps to have a partner the community trusts.
“The Community Foundation does such great work, and they have such integrity. Our community trusts them,” she said. “It’s a good option for donors, and they have helped connect us to donors who want to make an impact.
Photos courtesy of LifeScape.
A CENTURY OF WOMEN HELPING WOMEN
The Woman’s Alliance offers support that changes with the times
The downtown Sioux Falls of 1911 is not the downtown of today.
There are the obvious changes – new buildings, new modes of transportation, a footprint that is ever expanding how we delineate what, exactly constitutes downtown.
But, more than that, it was not a place particularly welcoming to women.
Consider that the original Minnehaha County Courthouse was built with a restroom for men – but not one for women, according to a 2010 article in the Argus Leader . Or that one businessman’s wife told him – when he was erecting a new building downtown – not to include a bathroom for women because they “shouldn’t be downtown.”
What was a woman to do – when she wanted to take a break from working or shopping downtown, to eat her lunch or feed her baby?
Photo courtesy of Girl Scouts Dakota Horizons.
Edith Kellar Lillibridge and Anna M. Eddy had an idea – and they gathered other women in support, raising money for the work. They became the Woman’s Alliance, and they used the money to set aside a few rooms downtown, at Ninth Street and Main Avenue, specifically for women to drop in during the day.
At the time, it was nearly revolutionary, said Candy Hanson, who has served on the board of the Woman’s Alliance since 1984.
Over the years, the Woman’s Alliance space grew to include a set of sleeping rooms and an employment service for women in need. There was a cafeteria. Their property expanded to a house, and then a two-story dormitory, providing a total of 25 bedrooms to accommodate 46 residents, according to the Woman’s Alliance’s historical marker, which is in the Cathedral District at South Spring Avenue and West Ninth Street.
Who stayed there? Everyone from the wives of ill veterans being treated in Sioux Falls to teen girls who “ran away to see the world,” according to the Argus Leader
Woman’s Alliance homes operated for more than 60 years, providing services and support for women, funded through gifts, bequests, rummage sales and card parties. The initial vision of the founders was “to help others help themselves.”
Sustained giving
In the 1970s, with more options for women available, the Woman’s Alliance sold the property and invested the
proceeds into an endowment, which has been held at the Sioux Falls Area Community Foundation since the 1990s.
“I don’t think they ever thought they would be out of the housing business, but the world changed so much,” Hanson said. “They decided they would just invest the money and use it to help women and girls in the area.”
An endowment was the ideal vehicle to ensure continued support. “The Community Foundation was the perfect shelter for our assets,” Hanson said. “And I think it still is. They help us decide each year how much to spend in order for that nest egg to always be there, and always be doing what we want it to do.”
Each year, the Woman’s Alliance board distributes grants from the endowment, to continue supporting women in the community.
The Woman’s Alliance has funded projects as diverse as weekend retreats for teen foster girls to grants which help low-income families repair their vehicles to scholarships for classes and camps in everything from the arts to technical schools.
Field of interest endowments, like the one with the Woman’s Alliance, are great opportunities to keep with the intended mission of an organization while allowing enough flexibility to meet changing needs.
Women, girls and programs benefiting from the endowment have different needs than they did in 1911, and the parameters of their endowment allow the Woman’s Alliance to meet those changing needs.
Photo courtesy of the Sioux Falls Area Community Foundation.
Photo courtesy of the Sioux Falls Area Community Foundation.
For women and girls
Hanson said the collective power of those original members continues – with threads that run through the history of the organization.
For example, in any gathering of the group, she’ll ask, “How many of you are from families with all daughters?”
Hands go up.
“We do have a tradition. Mrs. Delbridge had eight daughters,” Hanson said, of one of the longtime former members.
Kerri DeGraff, the new board president of the Woman’s Alliance, has three daughters.
DeGraff is a longtime member of the group and says as the mother of young girls, it has been a great fit. “I have always felt so strongly about wanting to make sure girls have good opportunities in the community,” she said. “It’s so rewarding. We get to meet to review the grant applications, and then meet with the nonprofits to give them the good news. It’s fun to see their reaction.”
One organization that has benefited is Girl Scouts.
“It’s especially exciting when women see the value of what Girl Scouts is doing and find that worthy of investment. It’s exciting to see women investing in the next generation of women leaders,” said Jennifer Hoesing, chief development officer of Girl Scouts Dakota Horizons.
Hoesing said the funds from the Woman’s Alliance have historically gone to their outreach programs, which help remove barriers for girls who want to participate. That can include everything from helping pay for membership dues to camp fees to a uniform.
“If there is a family, and finances will keep them from experiencing programs, funding from groups like the Woman’s Alliance helps girls participate,” Hoesing said.
But it also helps bring the Girl Scouts to the girls –programs at area schools and organizations, to introduce the organization to young women who might not otherwise be exposed, Hoesing said.
“We meet underserved populations where they are, and we bring programming directly to them,” Hoesing said. “The Woman’s Alliance has been supportive of that outreach programming.”
More than a thousand girls in the Sioux Falls area, and more than 7,500 in the region, participate in Girl Scouts.
“Girl Scouts has been a great partner of ours,” DeGraff said.
Mary Kolsrud, chief philanthropy officer, said the Sioux Falls Area Community Foundation is proud to help organizations such as the Woman’s Alliance.
“Supporting initiatives like the Woman’s Alliance is at the heart of what we do,” Kolsrud said. “Our role is to honor and sustain the vision of those who came before us, ensuring their legacy continues to make an impact for generations to come.”
Hanson said the Woman’s Alliance relies on the Foundation’s expertise in area nonprofits, helping provide insight as they consider where to give. “It’s a perfect place to steward an investment that’s going to benefit the Sioux Falls area,” Hanson said. “That’s what it’s all about – for good, forever. That’s why the Woman’s Alliance belongs at the Foundation.”
“We’re blessed with a community that is so supportive,” DeGraff said.
Photo courtesy of Girl Scouts Dakota Horizons.
A Champion for Philanthropy
By evaluating community needs and opportunities, building engagement around important issues, and connecting donors with purpose, we’re helping to transform generosity into impact, improving the quality of life for all.
200
The Giving Depot is where givers and doers connect. We know people have a heart for giving, but it can be difficult to know what the community needs. That’s where The Giving Depot comes in. Area nonprofits post their most pressing needs, and donors can explore the options and then choose where to give. Wondering where you can make a difference in Sioux Falls? The Giving Depot should be your next stop.
