Field of Dreams

WWhen students walk out onto the New Albany High School field next spring, they’ll be stepping out onto a $700,000 gift from the community.

The new artificial turf Veterans Field, fully funded by donations, was approved at a late September meeting of the New Albany-Plain Local Board of Education and work is expected to begin in November shortly after the last football game of the season.

About two-thirds of the $700,000 came from individual or family donors, says fundraising chairman Stuart Burgdoerfer. The remaining money came from corporate donors. None of the cost was funded by the district itself, Burgdoerfer emphasizes. Without private donors, the idea of a turf field wouldn’t have become a reality.

“This was a project initiated by and led by leaders in our community, and through their generosity – mostly that of residents and supported by some local companies,” Burgdoerfer says.

Crafting a Vision

The field is just one of many projects for which New Albany residents have opened their hearts and wallets over the years. The city has a strong reputation for giving. It’s been widely reported that 43054, the New Albany ZIP code, boasts the most Pelotonia riders and that, together, they raise more than residents of any other city.

At the heart of New Albany giving is its very own community foundation. Started in 1994, the New Albany Community Foundation, a component of the Columbus Foundation, has facilitated the donation of more than $7 million, President Craig Mohre estimates.

The New Albany Community Foundation has driven the discussion about the direction of the village’s – and now the city’s – growth. A big part of the reason why is its Board of Trustees, Mohre says. In addition to the usual cadre of company CEOs, presidents and vice presidents is a host of ex-officio members: the mayor, president of the Plain Township Board of Trustees, school district superintendent, school board president and John “Jack” Kessler, chairman of The New Albany Company and one of the Community Foundation’s founders.

“You’ve got those community leaders with other community leaders, so it can become a dialogue about, ‘What can we do together to advance the aspirations of the community?’” Mohre says.

In addition to the grants it awards to community organizations each year, the foundation has helped shape the cul- tural climate of the city. It helped bring a branch of the Columbus Metropolitan Library to anchor Market Square. When residents asked for a community center, the foundation led the way in raising many of the necessary funds to create the Jeanne B. McCoy Community Center for the Arts, which is part school auditorium, part community center.

Former board Chairman David Ryan, who led the fundraising charge for the McCoy Center and is now an ex-officio board member, maintains that it’s more than a foundation.

“It’s amazing,” Ryan says. “It touches virtually everyone’s life in the community. The arts center is something I’m especially proud of. … The foundation really is a convener. They tend to bring groups together for a common cause and help get it done.”

Helpful Households

The foundation’s biggest fundraiser each year is the annual Remarkable Evening event – this year’s dinner with former U.S. President Bill Clinton on Nov. 29 is sold out – but money goes into and out of the foundation all year long via its smaller family funds.

The foundation has between 20 and 30 family funds – private funds created by individuals for various charitable purposes. Some are true endowments, for which the grants awarded come out of the interest on an investment, but more are pass-through accounts, which function similarly to a bank account, Mohre explains.

About nine of the funds support programming at the arts center, including the Ellen and David Ryan Fund, which was started in 2003.

“We supported the library in New Albany, we’ve supported some programs at the schools and some dance programs,” Ryan says. “Mostly that fund is set up to support the arts and the arts in the schools. We just think the arts contribute to everyone’s lives. Kids ought to get involved in art or music or dancing. It’s good for lifelong learning.”

Generally, the foundation presents the Ryans with needs, and the couple discusses each individual project and makes a decision on whether or not it is in line with their goals for the fund, Ryan says.

Though Ryan no longer lives in New Albany (the couple moved away about a year ago and now split their time between homes in Florida and Michigan), they still consider themselves part of the community and would encourage other New Albany residents to set up a family fund.

“I think it’s a tremendous way to give back to the community,” Ryan says. “I’d encourage anyone to support activities in New Albany … to provide more opportunities for kids – and hopefully (the kids will) do the same when they become able.”

Vision for Veterans

When Burgdoerfer, chief financial officer for Limited Brands, Inc., took over the fundraising campaign for the new turf field at the high school in spring 2012, athletic boosters had raised $250,000 toward the project.

Burgdoerfer, a father of three – all three attended or are still attending New Albany-Plain Local Schools – was on board with the idea of a turf field for the simplest of reasons.

“An artificial turf field is a great asset for our school district and our community. And New Albany, through residents and local companies, has the spirit of philanthropy and leadership needed to fund such a project,” Burgdoerfer says.

A private fundraiser hosted in his own home helped to secure much of the funding, but the largest single piece was a $150,000 donation from Jackie and Ken Krebs.

The Krebs also have three children who attended New Albany schools, and had heard of the turf project and were supportive of it, but over time, they decided that they wanted to do something more, Ken says.

“We thought it would be a project that would be a great asset for the schools and we thought it would be a way of showing our appreciation for the positive experience we had through the schools with our three kids,” Ken says.

Both Jackie's and Ken’s fathers were members of the military, so the name “Veterans Field” is a tribute to them.

“When the turf project came across, I thought perhaps that making a major gift would not only help with the momentum toward getting this project done, but also would allow us to acknowledge our veterans,” Ken says. “It was really a convergence of various factors. I have always been conscious of doing something in a way that I could honor my father and my father-in-law. They would be embarrassed to think we did this on their behalf, but it certainly played a role.”

Along with the naming rights, the Krebs also negotiated a special deal: Veterans will now get in free to sporting events held at the field.

Though the Krebs had contributed to various other charitable causes in the past (they recently gave the band $5,000 toward new hats), this is their largest donation yet – and that fact spurred the couple to start their own family fund through the New Albany Community Foundation, Ken says.

“It was extremely easy to set up,” Ken says. “(Mohre) and his team made it painless. We met, he explained what it involved, I had a couple follow-up questions, which he promptly answered … and we had it set up in very short order. It was seamless.”

Setting up a family fund was a good decision financially, too.

“In our case, there were some tax benefits because we were able to donate appreciated securities, so (the foundation) worked with us to be able to do it in a tax-effective way,” Ken says.

People such as the Krebs are models of generosity for the community to follow, Burgdoerfer says.

“We learn from the example of others,” Burgdoerfer says, citing the long-term generosity of Limited Brands founder Les Wexner and his wife, Abigail, as a big influence on the philanthropy of others.

“Leaders lead and other people take notice. There’s a real positive momentum that comes through leadership, observation and the example of others. So much of what we learn through life is through an example in front of us,” Burgdoerfer says.

Lisa Aurand is editor of Healthy New Albany Magazine. Feedback welcome at laurand@cityscenemediagroup.com.

By Garth Bishop