Julie Leeth (right) with CFO's Rural Schools Partnership presents a DVD copy of "Hats, Pies and Fiddles," as well as $100 check, to Sophia Greenwalt, organizer of Reeds Springs Middle School's Hat Day program.

If ever the character of an entire town could be summed up by one of its youngest citizens, Reeds Spring, Mo. is wonderfully represented by 13-year-old Sophia Greenwalt.

A 7th grader at Reeds Spring Middle School, Sophia has spent the last two school years orchestrating a monthly “Hat Day,” which has rallied her fellow students around philanthropy and community-building. Sophia put together a PowerPoint presentation and presented the idea to the school. The idea – in which students are allowed to wear any type of appropriate headwear one day a month (hats are usually against dress code) – is facilitated by the Reeds Spring School Foundation and supported by school administration, faculty and staff. It is truly a community effort.

“I just wanted to help people, and we never get to wear hats during school,” Sophia said. “I just thought it would be cool to have everyone take part in it.”

“Take part” is putting it mildly. Since September 2010 Hat Day has raised more than $13,000 for local charities, including the local Humane Society, Ozarks Honor Flight, Shop With a Cop and the school’s backpack program for students in need of food options at home.

On Friday, Jan. 13, Sophia was honored for her efforts at one of the school’s Character assemblies. The Reeds Spring School Foundation and the Community Foundation of the Ozarks’ Rural Schools Partnership presented her with a $100 grant to put towards a future Hat Day’s collection total. The school was also treated to a special screening of “Hats, Pies and Fiddles” a short film produced by the Rural Schools Partnership to help illustrate the importance of rural school foundations. Hat Day is one of the film’s case studies, and Sophia one of its stars.

“Hats, Pie and Fiddles” is just one element of a joint effort between the RSP and the Rural School and Community Trust’s Center for Midwestern Initiatives to help promote rural school foundations as vital parts of a school district’s (and a community’s) financial and social support system.

Sophia’s mother, Nettie Greenwalt, was in attendance at the surprise check presentation, and said the ceremonial big check is now hanging on Sophia’s wall. She also said the school foundation and administration, led by Table Rock Lake Community Foundation and Reeds Spring Schools Director of Public Relations Jim Holt, has been instrumental in the Hat Day program’s success.

“I want to give a whole lot of credit to Mr. (Jim) Holt,” Nettie Greenwalt said. “He is Sophia’s biggest supporter.”

About the Rural Schools Foundation Toolkit

As Sophia’s story helps illustrate, education is the lifeblood of small communities, and rural citizens must do all they can to support their schools, teachers, and students. Establishing an active and effective school foundation is an important step in ensuring rural school sustainability. To this end, the Community Foundation of the Ozarks’ Rural School Partnership and The Rural School and Community Trust’s Center for Midwestern Initiatives have collaborated on the development of a comprehensive rural school foundation toolkit.

The toolkit has three primary features:

1. The film Hats, Pies, and Fiddles explores how three small-town school foundations engage students, teachers, and donors in creating a culture of school-centered philanthropy. This ten-minute film was shot by Missouri filmmaker Brandon Goodwin and highlights efforts in Reeds Spring and Alton, Missouri, and Fox (Rural Special School), Arkansas. DVDs are available upon request and the film is featured online.

2. A booklet, Building Rural School Foundations: A Blueprint for Stronger Rural Communities, has been published and is available online and in print. Produced by Missouri graphic artist and photographer Aaron Scott, the booklet provides action steps for establishing a rural school foundation as well as a donors’ guide on how to make charitable contributions. In addition, school foundation success stories showcase the Ozarks communities of Conway, Bradleyville, Chadwick, and Hartville, along with Wessington Springs, South Dakota.

3. A School Foundation Building website has been constructed in conjunction with the Center for Midwestern Initiatives. The site includes the aforementioned film and booklet, and it provides current examples and stories of the good and important work being done by school foundations from throughout the Midwest. The site’s blog provides readers with an opportunity to share their personal stories and submit materials to the site. Click here to view the CMI’s school foundation building page.

These efforts have been made possible by funding from the Philanthropy Initiative, a capacity building grant program of the Community Foundation of the Ozarks.

Table Rock Lake CF President Jim Holt, far left, and Vice President Nita Jane Ayres, far right, present a ceremonial check to non-profit agencies in their Barry County service area as part of this week's community grantmaking awards.

Stone County service providers are honored at a luncheon in Kimberling City.

The Table Rock Lake Community Foundation presented 13 community grants this week totaling nearly $30,000, including two first-time challenge grants designated for start-up organizations or one-time projects.

“Our goal is to support projects that provide vital community services, encourage collaboration within groups and improve our region as a whole,” said Jim Holt, president of the TRLCF, a CFO affiliate foundation.

The Eagle Rock-Mano Fire Department received a $2,000 challenge grant for a new generator and the Lakes Area Child Advocacy Center received the other $2,000 challenge grant for a piece of specialized equipment to improve screening young children who may be victims of abuse.

The other grant recipients were:

• Central Crossing Fire District: $3,000 for two AEDs
• CHANCES of Stone County: $1,300 to send kids to Camp Barnabas
• Children’s Smile Center : $2,500 for services for Stone County
• Christian Associates of Table Rock Lake: $3,000 to support its Northern Stone Facility
• Kimberling Area Library Association: $1,500 for book purchases
• Kornerstone Family Literacy:  $3,000 Early Childhood Center &  High School Recovery Program
• Lives Under Construction Boys Ranch:  $2,000 for its Community Assistance Program
• Pregnancy Life Line:  $2,000 for its  “Earn While You Learn” program curriculum
• Stone County Council on Aging: $1,250 for its Good Neighbor Transportation program
• Shell Knob Alliance of Churches: $3,000 for Community Assistance Programs
• Tri-Lakes Animal Shelter: $1,500 to help support improved conditions

The Community Foundation of the Ozarks is again teaming up with Ozarks Food Harvest and the Walmart State Giving Program to tackle the chronic hunger problems that affect our region.

The 2^nd Annual Ozarks Million Dollar Hunger Challenge kicked off at a news conference at Ozarks Food Harvest today. The Walmart Foundation State Giving Program pledged a $125,000 grant toward a 1:1 match with regional food pantries served by Ozarks Food Harvest.

The participating food pantries were selected in 27 communities that have CFO affiliate foundations so that those foundations could offer fundraising support, community grantmaking awards or other types of assistance to partner with their local food banks.

“This is a great way to address hunger across one-third of the state of Missouri using a great trio of partners,” OFH President and CEO Bart Brown said.

He also discussed a new analysis of local “food insecurity” levels that support anecdotal information and a 2010 Hunger Study. The analysis shows that many people facing “food insecurity” have income and/or resources that make them ineligible for assistance programs. Many of them are people who have lost jobs, but still have homes or cars that count as assets.

“More and more clients who come to food pantries are the unemployed middle class who need assistance,” Brown said. “Technically, they’re not poor, but they don’t have any money.”

Through Ozarks Food Harvest’s buying program, the $250,000 in potential funds from the challenge grant and matching funds will leverage about $1 million worth, or 2.5 million pounds, of food for the participating pantries, food banks and mobile food banks.

The first Million Dollar Hunger Challenge was completed last year when 19 CFO affiliates raised $105,000, which was matched with $100,000 from the Walmart State Foundation.

CFO President Brian Fogle said this represents another example where charitable dollars are filling the gaps created by decreased public funding at all levels. He said this model works well because it directly serves residents in the communities where the money will be raised.

“That is philanthropy at its best,” Fogle said.

Becky Wood, Walmart’s Senior Foundation Manager from Bentonville, Ark., said the company’s State Giving Councils are comprised of local associates who determine the best use of foundation resources for  their states.

“It’s great to be a partner with you in Springfield,” she said.

Andrea Standlee

So Brown has established a new fund through the Table Rock Lake Community Foundation – the Andrea Standlee Memorial Fund - with a goal of purchasing fire extinguishers for the vehicles of about 130 volunteer firefighters in Stone County.

A May graduate of Blue Eye, Standlee was killed in a one-car crash on Missouri 86 on her way to class at Ozarks Technical Community College on the morning of Sept. 14. She missed a curve and her small pickup overturned and hit some trees. She survived the crash and was coherent and talking to rescuers when the car caught on fire, Brown said. But no one at the scene had a fire extinguisher available and Standlee, 18, died before rescuers could free her.

“This was truly something that I think could have been avoided,” she said. “I don’t know that absolutely for sure. But when the accident happened, she was talking. She was able to want out of there.”

Brown said she was surprised to learn that volunteer firefighters in many areas don’t carry fire extinguishers. She said she learned it was a budget issue, but that if she could develop private resources, volunteer departments would welcome the equipment.

Her initial goal is to raise about $7,000 to equip Stone County first responders with the fire extinguishers, mounting brackets, recharging equipment and training on proper use. Any additional money raised will be used to do the same for Taney County volunteers and eventually spread to other areas of the Ozarks.

Missouri State Highway Patrol Sgt. Dan Bracker commends Brown on her efforts. He said fire extinguishers are standard equipment for Highway Patrol cars and are used in a range of situations from serious accidents to grass fires. While he doesn’t have first-hand knowledge of Andrea Standlee’s crash, he said an extinguisher can either suppress a fire or keep it from growing long enough to attempt a rescue.

“I think it’s a great idea,” he said. “I hope she can catapult this to provide them across the region. Those volunteer first responders out there should appreciate the efforts she is making to get them equipped with fire extinguishers.”

Contributions to the Andrea Standlee Memorial Fund can be made to the Community Foundation of the Ozarks, 425 E. Trafficway, Springfield, Mo., 65806, or by donating online.

At a recent Ozarks Food Harvest Mobile Pantry in Joplin, 150 people received eggs, cheese, meat, bread, cereal, Gatorade, and snack foods to feed their families

CFO affiliates raised $105,000 and received $100,000 in matching funds from the Walmart State Foundation to fight chronic hunger in their communities.

A total of 19 affiliates successfully completed the Challenge Grant, which is being channeled primarily through the Ozarks Food Harvest, which has a 28-county service area that largely mirrors the CFO’s region.

The CFO affiliates that completed the Hunger Challenge are: Aurora, Bolivar, Cassville, DACO (Dade County), Dallas County, El Dorado Springs, Finley River (Ozark area), Houston, Jacks Fork, Southwest Missouri (Carthage-Joplin area), Marshfield, Nixa, Oregon County, Seymour, Stockton, Table Rock Lake, Taney County, and West Plains.

The Wal-Mart State Foundation State Giving Program selected the Ozarks Food Harvest for its challenge grant program last year, which began in response to the national report – “Hunger in America 2010” – describing the extent to which hunger plagues Ozarks communities. An estimated 155,000 Ozarkers face chronic hunger issues, according to the report.

For more information, see the full  Hunger Challenge news release .

Springfield public radio station, KSMU, aired a June 14 report on the program, which is made possible through the CFO’s Ozark Plateau Initiative to bring visiting artists to rural communities.

Shell Knob hosted a performance by Jim and Kim Lansford Saturday, June 12, to accompany the exhibition “This Contest is for Real Hands: Rodeo Photographs of the 1930s,” which continues at the Old Church Gallery through June 15.

Mountain Grove also hosted an “Opry-style” performance Saturday, June 12, by Les Gillham, to go with the “The Grand Ole Opry” exhibit, which continues through June 15 at the Mountain Grove Senior Center. The local history and Arts Councils developed this project to coincide with Mountain Grove’s community fair.

Willard’s exhibition – “Apron Strings: Ties to the Past” – continues at Rocco’s Italian Restaurant through June 15. Colleen Mallette performed there to accompany the exhibit.

Eldon also chose “The Grand Ole Opry” as its exhibition, which will run from June 21-25 at the Senior Center of Eldon. Jim and Kim Lansford will perform on June 25 at the Senior Center.

Houston selected the “Apron Strings” exhibition, which will run from June 23-July 7 in conjunction with Licking’s summer Rodeo, along with a performance to be announced.

The Ozark Plateau Initiative, created in 2005 through leadership provided by Springfield philanthropist Sally Baird, undertook this project with the Mid-America Arts Alliance to serve CFO’s regional affiliate communities. Since its inception, programs have taken place in Salem, Seymour, West Plains, Cuba, Stockton, Forsyth, Gainesville, Poplar Bluff, Carthage, Clinton, Hermitage, Mt. Vernon, Marshfield and Ozark. The Missouri Arts Council has joined the partnership by providing resources to continue the program for more communities in the future.

The Community Foundation of the Ozarks is pleased to announce the Ozarks Million Dollar Hunger Challenge. Made possible by a $100,000 grant from the Walmart Foundation State Program and a partnership with Ozarks Food Harvest, this program allows CFO affiliate community foundations to raise  dollars that will be matched 1:1 to fight hunger in their local communities. The program will leverage the initial $100,000 gift into $200,000 which will procure $1 million worth of food through Ozarks Food Harvest, the only food bank serving one-third of Missouri.

Twenty-one  affiliates have chosen to participate in this program which was available to those CFO affiliates that fall within Ozarks Food Harvest’s 29-county service area. A complete of list participating affiliates is located at the end of this story.

“It’s only natural that we partner with the Walmart Foundation and CFO since our service areas in this part of the state literally mirror each other,” said Bart Brown, president and CEO of Ozarks Food Harvest.

Hunger challenge funds have been established as component funds of each participating affiliate community foundation. The matching opportunity runs through June 30, 2010.

“The challenging economic environment we’re facing calls for us to identify new resources to help with hunger, and make the existing ones stretch further,” said Brian Fogle, executive vice president of the Community Foundation of the Ozarks. “The generous Walmart grant provides the catalyst for our affiliates to raise matching funds, and the strength and connections of Ozarks Food Harvest insure those funds will be used in the most effective manner to address hunger in our Ozarks region.”

This partnership was unveiled following the February 4th announcement of a new landmark hunger study which found that Ozarks Food Harvest is serving 155,000 individuals annually. Ozarks Food Harvest-The Food Bank distributed seven milion pounds of food during its last fiscal year, the highest distribution in its 27-year history. To view the complete study and learn more, please visit ozarksfoodharvest.org.

Ozarks Million Dollar Hunger Challenge participating affiliates include:
- Aurora Area Community Foundation
- Bolivar Area Community Foundation
- Cassville Community Foundation
- DACO Community Foundation
- Dallas County Community Foundation
- El Dorado Springs Community Foundation
- Finley River Community Foundation
- Houston Community Foundation
- Jacks Fork Community Foundation
- Marshfield Area Community Foundation
- Mtn. Grove Area Community Foundation
- Nixa Community Foundation
- Oregon County Community Foundation
- Ozark County Community Foundation
- Greater Seymour Area Foundation
- Community Foundation of Southwest Missouri (Carthage & Joplin)
- Stockton Community Foundation
- Table Rock Lake Community Foundation
- Taney County Community Foundation
-  Community Foundation of West Plains

CAPTION: From left to right: Skip Tinney, market manager, Walmart; Sharon Whitehill Gray, president, Nixa Community Foundation & CFO board member; Leigh Hall, Nixa Community Foundation board member; Brian Fogle, CFO; Betty Ann Rogers, Nixa Community Foundation board member; and Bart Brown, president/CEO, Ozarks Food Harvest.

Pictured above: left to right, John Johnson, Connie Johnson (president), John Coonrod, Nita Jane Ayres, Richard Dean and Melissa Ortman (not pictured: Jim Riddle and Lisa Rau) with a check representing the matching funds presented at the April 27 board meeting.

The Harry Cooper Supply Company Campaign for the Ozarks is a dollar for dollar challenge grant in partnership with the Community Foundation of the Ozarks that is part of an overall regional effort to enhance community grantmaking endowments, establish administrative/operations endowments, and promote appropriate and best practices by community foundation board of directors. This initiative is made possible through the generosity of the Harry Cooper Supply Company. See more photos and news from the Cooper Campaign here.

The Tri-Lakes Community Hospices Fund was started with a $225,000 bequest. The bequeathor requested that their gift be used for hospice care in Stone and Taney Counties.

The fund will be used to meet the needs of patients in hospice care and their families, needs not provided through government or private insurance. Patient needs, such as bills or household items, consistent with hospice’s mission to “provide comfort and support to patients and their families when a life-limiting illness no longer responds to cure-oriented treatments” are identified by hospice staff members who then apply for a grant from the fund to meet patient needs. The fund can also be used to support volunteer enhancement efforts and for public education about hospice.

“Branson has been very generous to hospice,” said Dorsey Levell with the Community Hospices of America Foundation. “This gift will bring more attention to community hospice and help the staff carry out our mission to provide comfort and dignity to patients and families in a difficult time.”

Related: Click here to learn more about giving back to the community through estate planning. The Legacy Society recognizes and honors donors who have included CFO in their estate planning as well as those who have made bequests.