We talk a lot about giving during the holidays, and I’m reminded of Winston Churchill’s eloquent words, “We make a living by what we get. We make a life by what we give.”
Southwest Minnesota is filled with caring people, who make the lives of others better through their generosity. So many of the positive things happening in our rural communities are because people are willing to lend a hand and help those in need.
I love the spirit of community that we see…especially around the holidays. It’s inspiring to see families coming together to share their blessings and give back to their communities through their family philanthropy.
It’s been an honor to share some special Southwest Initiative Foundation donor stories over the last few weeks. Our donors have different reasons for giving to Southwest Initiative Foundation.
- Take Dave and Marlyce Logan from Pipestone. They’re Growing Home Circle members who give to our unrestricted general endowment. They want to teach their grandkids the importance of giving. So, each year, they make a gift in honor of each of their seven grandchildren—Lucile, Audrey, Samuel, Scott, Molly and Jack–who range in age from 2 ½ to 16.
- Another family, the Siebenands, learned the importance of giving from their parents. Siblings John, Chuck, Mary Ann and Kathryn grew up in Madison and made a gift of farmland through our Keep It Growing℠ farmland giving program this year. They wanted to honor their late parents who always instilled in them the importance of giving to others.
Southwest Initiative Foundation has been partnering with families like the Logans and the Siebenands for nearly 30 years. And that’s just the beginning. By building permanent endowments that will give back to our communities for generations to come, we are helping families for good and forever.