PAG

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SUMMER 2016

PAG

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E 3Welcome &Thanks

ANNIVERSARY SPONSORS

Congratulating Graduates

Tom and Georgia Bricker have touched many lives in Porter County. Georgia taught school in South Haven for 33 years and Tom was a popu-lar insurance professional with State Farm – the kind of agent who wrote per-sonal notes and remembered birthdays. When Tom passed away in 2006, Georgia knew that she wanted to honor him with a gift to their community. She has created the Tom and Georgia Bricker Scholar-ship fund to pass on their love of learning and support for the community. “Tom would be thrilled,” said Georgia. “I love that the scholarship is forever so that even when I’m gone, we’ll be helping our community,” she said. “It’s a good feeling

to know that we’re doing a positive thing with funds that would nearly all have gone to taxes.” Georgia herself benefited from a scholarship to at-tend college and become a teacher. “I was grateful for the help. Tom and I both valued education and loved children so I felt that this was the right vehicle for us to give back. I trusted the Foundation to help make the right choic-es,” said Georgia. She was able to establish the scholar-ship fund using a charitable IRA rollover. The charitable IRA rollover has become a permanent option for giving to charity with tax-free dollars.

Learn more in the sidebar on this page.

Create a Legacy BRICKERS

WITH SCHOLARSHIP

Georgia Bricker established a scholarship in memory of her husband Tom, who passed away in 2006. The first recipient of this scholarship is Nichole Fieser (Hebron High School), pictured with Georgia Bricker.

Here to Stay: Charitable IRA Rollover

A new law that passed in 2015 makes the Charitable IRA Rollover a permanent option for American taxpay-ers. This means that a taxpayer age 70 ½ or older may “roll over,” or transfer, up to $100,000 annually from his or her individual retirement account (IRA) for a qualified charitable distribution. The amount transferred will be excluded from income of the taxpayer for federal income tax purposes. The amount transferred does not generate a charitable income tax deduction, but it does count toward the taxpayer’s minimum required distribution. If married, each spouse can transfer up to $100,000 from his or her IRA annually.

“If you are required to take an IRA distribution annually and don’t need the money, this is an ideal way to support your favorite charities with tax-free dollars. The rollover to charity qualifies as all or a part of your annual mini-mum distribution,” said Bill Higbie, Foundation President and CEO. The Porter County Community Foundation is a qualified public charity and you can direct an IRA rollover to any fund within the Foundation other than a donor ad-vised fund. For more information, contact the Foundation at 219-465-0294.

1401 Calumet Avenue • Valparaiso, IN 46383

Bill HigbiePresident

Barbara A. YoungPresident Emeritus

Brenda SheetzVice President

Eryn LeonhardCommunications & Marketing Coordinator

Kim KilanderAdministrative Assistant

Kathleen KoenigReceptionist

Telephone 219-465-0294Email info@portercountyfoundation.org

www.portercountyfoundation.org

BOARD OF DIRECTORSKim Abbett

Community Volunteer

Andrew ArnoldPrecision Control Systems

Jan BarsophyHealthCare Management, LLC

Rick CalinskiNIPSCO

Laura CampbellCentier Bank

Laura ElliottIncapital

Dr. John FeltonRetired Ophthalmologist

Stephanie GerdesCentier Bank

Minakshi GhumanREMAX Pace Realty

Carol HallBerglund Construction

John HannonGreat Lakes Engineering

David Hollenbeck

Blachly Tabor Bozik & Hartman

Joe JaskowiakHoeppner, Wagner & Evans

Stephanie JonesCisco Systems

Susan Kelly-JohnsonAttorney at Law

Geoff LaciakLaciak Accountancy Group

Jon LeetzIndiana Beverage

Stephen LunnPorter Health Care System

William P. MaarThrivent Financial

Kent MishlerHorizon Bank

Ralph NeffMechanical Concepts, Inc.

Desila RosettiOrganizational Development Solutions

Gregory SobkowskiHodges & Davis

Jacki StutzmanCommunity Volunteer

Matt Vessely1st Source Bank

Spero ValavanisDesign Organization

John WalshHeat Wagon

Katharine WehlingIndependent Consultant

Congratulating GraduatesFor 26 local scholars, commencement is even sweeter, thanks to

scholarships presented at the Foundation’s annual Scholarship Banquet. “These students have worked hard to set their goals high and we’re so

pleased to help them on their next steps,” said Kent Mishler, Foundation Board member and Chair of the Scholarship Committee. This year’s recipients are:

Lilly Endowment Community ScholarshipsThe Porter County Community Foundation has awarded 76 Lilly Endowment Community Scholar-ships to Porter County students since 1998, totaling more than $4 million. The scholarship pays full tuition and fees to any college or university in the state of Indiana and $900 each year for books. The 2016 recipients are: (left to right) Emma Stricker (Chesterton High School), Austin Rocha (Boone Grove High School), and Kelley Hershberger (Kouts High School).

Launch Your Career ScholarshipsSince 2008, the Foundation has worked with the Porter County Career and Technical Education Center to award scholarships to students. The recipients for 2016 are: (top row, left to right) Brett Ford (Portage High School), Elijah Bailey (Valparaiso High School), Meghan Sullivan (Wheeler High School), Addisen Stone (Boone Grove High School), Jon Groth (Director of the Porter County Career and Technical Education Center), (bottom row, left to right) Stephanie Subart (Wheeler High School), Meghan Banik (Morgan Township High School), Lindsey Nigro (Valparaiso High School). Not Pictured is Rachel Gebhardt (Valparaiso High School).

Harlan A. Siegesmund Liberty Township Alumni ScholarshipThe Harlan A. Siegesmund Scholarship was established by the Class of 1958 to honor the long-time principal. The scholarship is presented to a graduate of Chesterton High School with a prefer-ence given to residents of Liberty Township. This year’s recipient is Zachary Kessinger (Chesterton High School) who was unable to attend the banquet.

ANNIVERSARY SPONSORS

Cheers to 20 Years CELEBRATION

Join us November 5, 2016 at the Porter County Expo Center to celebrate the Foundation’s 20th Anniversary! Featured performance by The Unexpected Boys™. More Details to come – follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Congratulating GraduatesFoundation Awards 305 Scholarships since 1998

Porter County Community Foundation ScholarshipsUnderstanding the importance of education, the Porter County Community Foundation provides $4,000 scholarships for Porter County students each year. This year’s recipients are: Daniel Clem-ens (Hebron High School), and Juna Johnson (Washington Township High School). Not pictured is Jane Tullis (Valparaiso High School).

Shawn Moyer Memorial ScholarshipShawn Moyer was a 1999 recipient of the Lilly Endowment Community Scholarship. During his sophomore year at Taylor University, Shawn lost his battle with cancer. The remaining balance of his scholarship was endowed to create this award for Kouts High School graduates. This year’s recipient, Emma Leatherman, pictured here with Shawn’s parent’s Nicholas and Beverly Moyer.

NIPSCO Sponsored ScholarshipsNIPSCO has partnered with the Foundation for the past 14 years to provide $1,000 scholarships to Porter County students. This year’s recipients are: (left to right) Ben Savage (Morgan Township High School), Sydnye Nosbusch (Valparaiso High School), Nina Tadic (Andrean High School), David Martinez (Portage High School), and Matthew Rasnic (Portage High School). Not pictured are Shannon Nadeau (Wheeler High School), Jacob Stadler (Marquette Catholic High School), Ruth Nicholson (Indiana Academy), and Megan Green (Chesterton High School).

Innovator BMO Harris Bank

Bruce and Beth White Family Foundation

Investor Jacki Stutzman

Builder 1st Source

Berglund Construction Indiana Beverage

Stewart and Kathryn McMillan

Leader Design Organization

Family Express Corporation Mason Investment Advisory Services

Methodist Hospitals NIPSCO

Porter Health Care System Scannell Wealth Management

Strack & Van Til/Town & Country Weiss Entities

Philanthropist Burke Costanza

& Carberry LLP Blachly, Tabor, Bozik

& Hartman, LLC Centier Bank

Eagle Services Corp. Fifth Third Bank

Hodges & Davis Hoeppner Wagner & Evans

Horizon Bank Horwood Marcus & Berk

Lakeside Wealth Management

Mechanical Concepts Peoples Bank

Precision Control Systems St. Mary Medical Center

Teachers Credit Union Tudor Cleaning and Restoration/

James and Jo Tudor UFS Corporation

Kathleen and John Walsh

1401 Calumet AvenueValparaiso, IN 43683

Non ProfitUS Postage

PAIDPermit 185

Valparaiso IN

Welcome &ThanksThe Porter County

Community Foundation wishes to thank our dedicated Board of Directors. We welcome the newest Board member: Matt Vessely, 1st Source Bank.

The Foundation also welcomes to our staff Eryn Leonhard, Communications & Marketing Coordinator.Eryn is a graduate of Valparaiso University where she graduated summa cum laude. She grew up in the northwest suburbs of Chicago, but has been a Valparaiso resident since 2008. She is experienced in leading marketing efforts, coaching, and writing for publication. “I’m

looking forward to

becoming more involved

in the Porter County

community and serving

others through the

Foundation,” she said.

In addition,

Kathleen Koenig,

Receptionist has also joined our team. Kathleen

and her husband moved to Valparaiso in

1994. A graduate of Indiana University,

Kathleen has been a Teaching Assistant

for St. Paul Catholic School for the past

nine years. She has also held various

positions in customer service and has great

organizational skills. “I am very excited and

honored to have the opportunity to work

for an organization that has such vision and

purpose. It is a unique opportunity for me

to contribute my talents to the community of

which I am so proud.”

Symphony Under the Stars August 3, 2016, 7:30 p.m. at Central Park Plaza in downtown Valparaiso.

Join us for this free concert fea-turing the Northwest Indiana Symphony Orchestra

Hosted by BMO Harris Bank, Spark-ing the Arts - an initiative of the Porter County Community Foundation, and The Times Media Company.

Chefs Around the Table October 6, 2016, 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at

the Porter County Expo Center in Valparaiso.Hosted by

EMPOWER Porter County, an

initiative of the Por-ter County Community Foundation.Chef spots and select sponsorship op-portunities are available for a limited time. For information, contact Kaye Frataccia at 219-465-0294.

Dueling Pianos November 18, 2016 at Sand Creek Country Club in Chesterton. Hosted by @PCgivingproject, Dueling Pianos will be an evening of enter-tainment featuring Windy City Dueling Pianos. More details to come - follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

SAVE DATES!THE We hope you’ll join us for upcoming events

Matt Vessely

After seven years with the Foundation, Carol Costakis has retired from her role as Community Resource Director. She made an outstanding contribution to the organization, including initiating the Foundation’s tremendously successful GIVE Days. The Foundation is grateful for her service and enduring support.

Carol Costakis Retires

Insta

@PCCFoundation

@PorterCountyCommunityFoundation

@Pococommunity foundation

Eryn Leonhard

Kathleen Koenig