The foundation has earmarked $1,000 of the $2,500 grant for a Hunger Challenge match, according to FRCF Board President Janis Creek.

The Legacy Leadership Challenge, which ended June 30, was a campaign to encourage Community Foundation of the Ozarks affiliates to lead by example in joining the Legacy Society. The Finley River Community Foundation’s 16 new Legacy Society members were the most among CFO’s 43 affiliates. All current board members are now Legacy Society members.

“The 100 percent participation of FRCF’s board members in the Legacy Society Challenge goes to their commitment to enhancing the quality of life in Ozark and eastern Christian County through community service, charitable giving and endowment building,” said Creek, who recently became president following Sarah Adams Orr, who led the FRCF when the challenge began.

The new FRCF Legacy Society members are: Dr. Cindy Baker, Jackie Barger, Margie Beadles, Brian Cathey, Carole Collins, Janis Creek, Susan Haralson, Joseph L. LaBarge, Jr., Karen Miller, Randy Mitchum, Mark & Sarah Orr, Kathryn Owens, Bill & Debbie Phillips, Tom & Patti Tobin, John Torgerson and Mark Woods. This brings the total number of FRCF Legacy Society Members to 19. Go to www.cfozarks.org/finley-river/ to view a full list of Legacy Society members and to learn more about the FRCF.

“As we work with our affiliates to promote planned giving to benefit future generations in their communities, we stress that it’s important for board members to participate themselves if they are asking others to consider legacy gifts,” CFO President Brian Fogle said. “This is an outstanding response from the Finley River Board to show their commitment to leaving a legacy for their area.”

Joining the Legacy Society for the Finley River Community Foundation can help ensure that residents and their families can support their valued causes and interests and leave a legacy for the area in perpetuity. Please go to www.cfozarks.org/legacy-society/ to learn more about planned giving and the benefits of joining the Legacy Society.

For more information on joining the Finley River Community Foundation’s Legacy Society, please contact: FRCF Board President Janis Creek, (417) 224-0346; or Winter Skelton, Community Foundation of the Ozarks, (417) 864-6199.

The third annual “10 Weeks Festival” kicks off with Saturday’s Springfield Symphony performance where patrons at participating arts events will be asked to contribute a dollar or more to support the arts-education endowment fund and the Care to Learn program.

The Festival, organized through the CFO’s Arts Patronage Sustainability Initiative, has a goal to raise $10,000 in 10 weeks, which will be split evenly between the endowment fund and Care to Learn’s efforts to meet health, hunger and hygiene needs of children in Springfield Public Schools. The Arts in Education endowment fund is  designated for bringing local arts presenters directly into schools.

More information about the “10 Weeks Festival” is available at the re-launched “10 Weeks” website, now at: cfoartsinaction.org.

The CFO’s Arts in Action website was relaunched this week by Element Eleven of Nixa to include expanded information about all of the CFO’s arts-related programs, including the Stand Up for the Arts Legacy Society, the APSI panel, and the Cultural Investment Fund.

The Springfield-Branson National Airport will present the second “Flights of Fancy” event on Thursday, June 9, to cap the Festival and celebrate the arts in our community. All proceeds from that event will apply to the “10 Weeks Festival” totals. The 2010 “10 Weeks Festival” raised $11,373 for the endowment and Care to Learn. 

Perhaps the largest presence in a room chock full of civic energy and pride was the one who was not there.

On Thursday night, the Nixa Community Foundation honored as its Citizen of the Year the late Betty Ann Rogers, a spirited volunteer and NCF board member who died unexpectedly last year at just 64.

Betty Ann was determined to contribute to Nixa when they moved to the community in 1998, said Mitch Callicott, whose moving tribute to his partner of 23 years stilled the room. She threw herself into every volunteer role with the same spirit and passion she put into her friendships and voracious reading habit, he said.

“We wanted to make this community our own,” Callicott said.

“I can only ask that we remember Betty Ann for what she was – energetic, loving, active and involved – and learn from her example. Become involved and make your mark. When you deeply and truly believe in something, you’ll make a difference.”

Every one of the citizens honored Thursday are making a difference in Nixa – at the schools, protecting the public, helping kids, and supporting community projects.

Another CFO partner, Holly Beadle, was honored as the school district’s Volunteer of the Year for her service including the Nixa Education Foundation Board.

President Sharon Whitehill Gray and the Board members distributed $46,591 in community grants to 24 organizations. As the CFO’s first affiliate in 1993 and now with the largest community grantmaking program, Nixa has awarded a total of $836,654 and has assets of more than $1.8 million in 50 community and school funds.

“You are to be congratulated for having the energy and resources that it takes to create a vibrant community,” CFO President Brian Fogle said.

And a special grant was presented to Mitch Callicott and Betty Ann’s step-daughter Shelby Rogers for the Betty Ann Rogers Community Fund. She was a member of the CFO’s Legacy Society for the Nixa Community Foundation. She understood the significance of making her mark for good on Nixa – the place she’d come to consider home.

NCF Vice President Ken Worthley had spoken earlier in the evening about what planned gifts like Betty Ann’s had meant to the community over the years.

“Each of us has the opportunity to plan how we want to give back to the community,” he said, recalling how philanthropic dollars helped create the park he played in as a kid.

“We have to plan for what we want things to be,” he said. “We are the ones reaping the benefits of their plans.”

Stand Up for the Arts patrons and guests enjoyed a thank-you reception at Obelisk Home to kick off last weekend’s First Friday activities in downtown Springfield.

The CFO held the reception to thank the Legacy Society members who joined on behalf of Stand Up for the Arts during 2009-10. Arts supporters can make planned gifts through the CFO’s Legacy Society designated specifically for a favorite arts program.

Springfield Regional Arts Council Executive Director Leah Hamilton Jenkins, an accomplished vocalist accompanied by Harry Beckett, entertained the group with a selection of their favorite standards.

We’d like to thank Nathan Taylor and Jay Martin, owners of Obelisk Home, for providing their wholesale showroom as an enjoyable venue for the reception.

Mrs. Fuqua-Mathiesen and Mr. Mathiesen have also made a planned gift that will leave a bequest to the Chad A. Fuqua Memorial Fund ensuring that the Hollister parks will remain an important part of the city. This planned gift recognizes Mrs. Fuqua-Mathiesen and Mr. Mathiesen as members of the Legacy Society.

In August 2008, at the age of 40, Chad Fuqua was struck and  killed while riding his motorcycle by an alleged drunk driver.   Prior to his untimely death, Fuqua served as Director of Parks and Recreation for the City of Hollister for ten years.   Alderman and Park Board Member, Scott McCaulley, stated, “ I can’t think of a major event we have had in Hollister that didn’t have Chad’s mark on it.” City aldermen voted in September 2008 to re-name the Town Hall Square Park to the Chad A. Fuqua Memorial Park to honor his service to the community.

The Taney County Community Foundation is an affiliate of the Community Foundation of the Ozarks. It is comprised of 37 funds with assets totaling approximately $2.8 million. In fiscal year 2009, the Taney County Community Foundation granted more than $125,000 back to the community. Please click here to learn more about the Taney County Community Foundation.

Legacy Society membership is a tangible step toward building charitable assets for the future and sustaining the organizations that serve our communities and neighbors.

CFO’s board of directors understands the importance of planned giving. Because of this, garnering 25 new Legacy Society members in this fiscal year is an annual goal.

For more information on how to give back to your community, please visit this link.  To view a complete list of Legacy Society members, please click here.

Leaving a bequest is a wonderful way to support the organizations you love after you pass on, and CFO can assist these plans. Henrietta Hedge was a retired schoolteacher with a passion for volunteerism and a heart filled with generosity. She loved her church, the First United Methodist Church of Carthage, and upon her passing left $100,000 in an endowment to be held with the Community Foundation of Southwest Missouri, Inc. to support the organization. Now the First United Methodist Church of Carthage will always remember Ms. Hedge for her thoughtful long-term support of their congregation.

Thoughtful planned giving has played a significant role in the growth of the Community Foundation of Southwest Missouri, providing new life to our towns, schools, and the non-profits we serve. A planned gift is simply a legacy to a charitable entity made through a deferred/intentional gift that keeps resources here, working for the benefit of organizations that serve our community. To learn more about planned giving and how you can give something back to your community, visit the planned giving section of our website.

For more information on becoming a Legacy Society member and leaving a planned charitable gift, please contact one of our offices in Springfield, Carthage or West Plains.

Nita Jane Ayres, Kimberling City, MO (Table Rock Lake Community Foundation)
Paul O. Barker, Springfield, MO (Community Foundation of the Ozarks)
David & Susan Belcher, Little Rock, AR (Community Foundation of the Ozarks)
John & Barbara Brockschmidt, Springfield, MO (Community Foundation of the Ozarks)
William & Sylvia Cornette, Forsyth, MO (Taney County Community Foundation)
Bridget & Andy Dierks, Springfield, MO (Houston Community Foundation)
Brian & Renee Fogle, Springfield, MO (Aurora Area Community Foundation)
JW and Kirsten Gibbs, Springfield, MO (Community Foundation of the Ozarks)
Mildred & Leona Hoffman, Ste. Genevieve, MO (Valle Schools)
Mimi Kauffman, Springfield, MO (Community Foundation of the Ozarks)
Paul & Charlene Koch, Springfield, MO (Community Foundation of the Ozarks)
Margo Murray, Oakland, CA (Ozark County Community Foundation)
John Nixon, Ozark, MO (Finley River Community Foundation)
Jill & Brad Reynolds, Springfield, MO (Community Foundation of the Ozarks)
Richard & Carol Silvey, West Plains, MO (Community Foundation of West Plains)
Winter Skelton, Springfield, MO (Mount Vernon Area Community Foundation)
JC Smith, Clinton, MO (Truman Lake Community Foundation)
Doug Thornsberry, Springfield, MO (Community Foundation of the Ozarks)
Price Baker Walden, Bolivar, MO (Bolivar Area Community Foundation)

The Foundation’s board of directors has challenged the organization to enlist at least one new Legacy Society member from each affiliate and 20 new members from metropolitan Springfield during this fiscal year. Through thoughtful planned giving, we strengthen community grantmaking, support sustainability of the foundations serving our neighbors and keep vital community capital in the Ozarks region. We hope that you’ll consider making a planned gift to the Foundation or your favorite charity. Please remember that the Community Foundation of the Ozarks staff stands ready to assist you in this effort.

To learn more about the Legacy Society, you can watch a short video featuring CFO’s honorary Legacy Society Ambassadors discussing what inspired them to give something back to their community and even some helpful dialog about how to make a charitable planned gift.