IQ Magazine- Q2 2015

IQ

1ST 2ND QUARTER QUARTER 2015 2015

ECONOMY

Flying Solo— Solo entrepreneurs search for flexibility and fulfillment. Pg. 10

PHILANTHROPY

Natural Enthusiasm— Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge friends are wild for a cause. Pg. 16

2015 INITIATIVE AWARDS SPECIAL ANNUAL REPORT EDITION

PEDAL POWER Bike trails bring healthier lifestyles and economic opportunities to Central Minnesota.

Pg. 21

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IQ

Initiative Foundation Quarterly 2ND QUARTER 2015

Contents FEATURES

DEPARTMENTS

21

6

Pedal Power

Bike trails bring healthier lifestyles and economic opportunities to Central Minnesota.

2015 Initiative Award Winners

27

Hometown Heroes

30

Unfailing Optimism

Midsota Manufacturing shows that investing in untested talent can lead to prosperity for all.

Chuck Christian’s family carries on with his lifelong legacy of generosity and helping others.

34 The College Try

When business smarts meet team spirit, opportunities abound for the Leech Lake Tribal College community.

38 Ready to Grow

Initiatives:

Regional Highlights Get the latest economic and community development highlights from the 14-county area.

10

Economy:

Flying Solo A growing number of

professionals are striking out on their own in search of flexibility and fulfillment.

16

Philanthropy:

Natural Enthusiasm The Friends

of the Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge are wild for a cause.

62

Home Made:

Granger Machine Isanti company grinds it out in the competitive field of custom machining.

64

Where is IQ?

Out-of-the-box innovation and an investment in early learning is paying dividends in Pine City.

47 53

Awards Event Photos 2014 ANNUAL REPORT A year in review: Learn about the ways in which you helped the Initiative Foundation invest in Central Minnesota.

CORRECTIONS The childcare center referenced on page 30 of the 1st Quarter edition of IQ Magazine is the Pine Children’s Early Learning Center, a private vendor childcare center located on the Pine Technical & Community College campus.

Paul Whitcomb was misidentified on page 36 of the 1st Quarter edition. Whitcomb is the mayor of Princeton.

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Alexandria | Bemidji | Brainerd/Baxter | Crookston | East Grand Forks | Grand Forks | Rochester

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Dear Friends, We often hit the trails when our kids and grandkids come to visit. We greet strolling neighbors and tourists. We watch the loons and ducks, examine bugs and worms, and pause to play at the water’s edge.

It’s great to see imaginations come alive as little boys have make-believe battles with fearsome monsters and invading aliens.

I’ll admit it can sometimes be a test of patience for this power-walkin’ grandma.

But then I pause and realize how fortunate we are to live in a place where we have easy access to a rich network of trails that can quickly get us out into nature.

I’m grateful to the community leaders who had the vision and tenacity to plan and develop our walking and riding paths. They saw how connecting our hometowns with the natural resources we hold so dear would strengthen our communities, attract families and provide healthy and fun opportunities.

You can read more about trails on page 21, where we explore how existing and planned connections are contributing to a more vibrant A trip on the trails is filled with action, adventure and imagination. way of life in Central Minnesota.

We also have some amazing human resources in our region—people who are changing their communities in real ways, like our 2015 Initiative Award winners: • Avon-based Midsota Manufacturing, Outstanding Enterprise: At a time when companies worry about a shortage of skilled workers, Midsota is proof that training your own workers can lead to bigger, better things.

• Leech Lake Tribal College, Outstanding Nonprofit: Out-of-the-box thinking multiplies opportunities for students and the wider community.

IQ VOLUME 17, 2ND QUARTER 2015

Initiative Foundation President | Kathy Gaalswyk Marketing & Communications Manager | Bob McClintick

Editorial Managing Editor | Elizabeth Foy Larsen Writer | Laura Billings Coleman Writer | Lisa Meyers McClintick Writer | Gene Rebeck Writer | Lawrence Schumacher Writer | Andy Steiner Writer | Sarah Colburn Art Art Director | Photographer Photographer Photographer

Teresa Lund | John Linn | Michael Schoenecker | Bill Jones

Advertising/Subscriptions Advertising Director | Brian Lehman Advertising Manager | Lois Head Advertiser Services | Janelle Breen Subscriber Services | Alyson Twardowski

• The late Chuck Christian and his family, Outstanding Generosity: Following in their dad’s footsteps, Chuck Christian’s children are contributing to a brighter future for people in the Elk River-Rogers area.

• Pine City Area Early Childhood Coalition, Outstanding Community: A broad-based community coalition is bringing life-changing learning to the area’s youngest residents.

Enjoy the magazine.

Kathy Gaalswyk PRESIDENT

405 First Street SE Little Falls, MN 56345 (320) 632-9255 | ifound.org

IQ Magazine unlocks the power of Minnesota leaders to understand and take action on regional issues.

RANGEDELIVERS.COM Printed at Range, Inc. with Soy-Based Ink on Recycled Paper

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NJPA core services and public benefit National Cooperative Contract Purchasing

Through its joint powers authority and statutory authority to engage in cooperative purchasing, NJPA is able to award contracts through a competitive solicitation process on behalf of its members. NJPA members, in accordance with their own laws, rules and regulations may purchase from the NJPA contracts; enabling funding for NJPA operation costs and marketing.

Technology Services

Education Solutions

NJPA’s Technology Solutions Department offers IT support and technology services to assist Region 5 members.

Training and consulting services to administrators, teachers, staff and students that includes training sessions on leadership and professional learning, assessment and curriculum, and effective instruction.

National Cooperative Contract Purchasing

Professional development services in leadership, supervision, planning and zoning. Plus discounted services in areas such as financial, economic development support, executive recruitment, land use, HR policies and grant writing.

Regional Low Incidence Project and Collaborative Service Workers

NJPA leads a Collaborative Service Team in Crow Wing County to provide strong research-based interventions and work with children and their families from birth to 18 at no cost.

City/County Services

Risk Management

NJPA’s Risk Management Pool serves twenty-eight government and education entities with insurance products and maintains a focus on wellness initiatives and continues to expand Life and Disability programs nationally.

NJPAcoop.org National Contract Purchasing • Risk Management • Education Solutions • IT Services • City/County Gov’t Services • And More!

IQ Initiatives

Regional Investment Highlights BENTON COUNTY

Loan Partners

The Initiative Foundation, in collaboration with Benton County, has assumed a loan issued to Sauk Rapids-based C4 Welding. Proceeds were used to purchase equipment to support the company’s growth. C4 Welding offers critical welding, manufacturing engineering, mechanical design, assembly and fabrication services for specialized customer projects.

CASS COUNTY

A New Way of Lending

Leech Lake Financial Services is launching a new lending program that enables tribal residents who do not meet typical credit standards to use their vacation balance as collateral for credit-building microloans. The program includes financial literacy courses. As loan recipients develop a credit history, they become eligible for other lending opportunities with the ultimate goal of encouraging entrepreneurialism.

CHISAGO COUNTY

Literacy Toolkits

CROW WING COUNTY

Paperless Priority

An effort to transition to electronic recordkeeping and client services at Bridges of Hope in Brainerd is getting a boost from an Initiative Foundation grant. The project, supported by a VISTA service member, involves researching best practices for electronic record retention, creating electronic forms and creating and testing processes for scanning and organizing prior year records.

CASS

WADENA

Income-eligible children and their families in the North Branch area will benefit from a take-home literacy toolkit supported by an Initiative Foundation grant.

Research shows that connections form when parents talk, read and sing with their babies and toddlers. These interactions build language, literacy, social and emotional skills.

TODD

CROW WING

MORRISON

MILLE LACS

ISANTI COUNTY

Happy Birthday!

The Braham Event Center celebrated its first year in operation, and what a busy year it was. An estimated 10,000 people attended 330-plus public and private events—from class reunions to healthy cooking classes. The event center is a community project led by Tusen Tack, an Initiative Foundation-supported nonprofit that uses thrift store proceeds to support a food shelf, a library and hospice programs.

KANABEC COUNTY

Safe, Secure Visits

Supervised visitation and safe exchange services between non-custodial parents and their children in Kanabec County are being supported through an Initiative Foundation grant to FamilyWise Services. The grant will help maintain regional access to visitation services while fortifying parent-child relationships.

MILLE LACS COUNTY

Fish On!

Nearly $4,000 was raised by the Rum River Community Foundation (RRCF) in April during the organization’s inaugural indoor fishing fundraiser. For $10, guests received a fish dinner and a chance to fish for dozens of prizes. An estimated 300-plus people attended. The Milaca-area RRCF is a Turn Key component fund of the Initiative Foundation.

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BENTON STEARNS

SHERBURNE

WRIGHT

Get Your Tickets!

Tickets for the Sept. 19 Cheers to Morrison County craft beer and wine tasting festival are now on sale. All proceeds go to the Morrison County Area Foundation (MCAF), a Turn Key component fund of the Initiative Foundation. The inaugural event in 2014 drew more than 450 people and generated $8,600 for MCAF and the programs it supports.

PINE COUNTY

All About The Arts

A grant from the Greater Pine Area Endowment (GPAE), a Turn Key component fund of the Initiative Foundation, enabled Pine Center for the Arts to create more openness, improve gallery display lighting and better serve the community.

Since 1992, the GPAE has worked to enhance the quality of life for individuals and families in the Pine City area.

SHERBURNE COUNTY

All Aboard!

More than 200 families attended the April Early Childhood Fair in Princeton.

The event, supported by 25 local businesses and a grant from the Initiative Foundation, provided games, a reading corner, free healthy snacks and a vehicle fair featuring race cars and police and fire vehicles. The event was headlined by Choo Choo Bob, a children’s TV character played by Princeton native Sam Heyn.

STEARNS COUNTY

Reading Rox

The St. Cloud Rox baseball team had a new hit on its hands with its June 14 “Books & Baseball” day. With sponsorship from the Initiative Foundation and United Way of Central Minnesota, the first 250 families with a child 5 or younger received a book and had the opportunity to read with players on the field prior to the start of the game.

TODD COUNTY

Community Kitchen PINE

KANABEC

E

MORRISON COUNTY

CHISAGO

ISANTI

A new community kitchen at the former Eagle Valley High School site is gaining steam with a $300,000 grant from South Country Health Alliance. The planned community kitchen in Eagle Bend will provide congregate and home-delivered meals to residents across Todd and Wadena counties. The Initiative Foundation has supported the community kitchen initiative through grants and technical advice.

WADENA COUNTY

Education & Access

A grant from the Initiative Foundation to the Wadena County Public Health Department will create educational opportunities and increase access to timely dentalcare for children birth to age 5. The county and the Wadena County Early Childhood Coalition are collaborating to reach the broadest possible audience while assessing barriers and service gaps.

WRIGHT COUNTY

Regrouping in Delano

The Delano Area Community Fund, a Turn Key component fund of the Initiative Foundation since 2012, is resetting its priorities and its vision. The fund was established in the late 1990s and supports education and lifelong learning, economic vitality and social, cultural and leisure initiatives in the communities within the Delano School District 879 boundaries.

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economy

A READING RESOURCE: Lori Langerud is a solopreneur who specializes in tutoring children with dyslexia.

Flying Solo Seeking flexibility and fulfillment, a growing number of professionals are striking out on their own.

By Gene Rebeck | Photography by John Linn

Lori Langerud was frustrated by the lack of educational options for her four children. Each had been diagnosed with dyslexia—a learning difference that affects reading, writing and spelling—but none was getting the support she felt they needed to reach their potential.

As a busy mother, Langerud also required flexibility in her work day. So, six years ago, the St. Joseph mom founded Reading Resources, a consultancy that trains school districts, parents, independent coaches and tutors in the Orton-Gillingham method, which is considered the gold standard in dyslexia support. Langerud also helps schools and parents locate assessment services.

So far, Langerud has trained about 150 teachers from public and private schools. She also has worked with more than 100 families through private coaching or teaching parents how to tutor their kids. In addition, Langerud has trained six other coaches whom districts can hire to meet their needs.

Starting her own business wasn’t a huge stretch for Langerud, who had worked for a book company before launching Reading

Resources. “I gained a lot of experience in that setting because you learn how to work with the public,” she said. “You also learn a little more about how to find your market and communicate with your clients.”

Langerud is an example of a solo entrepreneur, or “solopreneur,” someone who starts and runs a businesses without employees. Their numbers are relatively small but growing. According to research by Economic Modeling Specialists International, the number of people who primarily work on their own in the United States grew 14 percent in the first decade of the millennium, to 10.6 million people. Many find that working for themselves is a path to greater fulfillment.

The reasons that people go solo are diverse: In some cases, it might be the only option available in a difficult economy. But many follow the path because they see an opportunity to provide a needed service or product, to have more flexibility in their time, or to feel more fulfilled in the kind of work that they do.

Passion into Profits Barry Kirchoff, who has worked with solo entrepreneurs as director of the Central Minnesota Small Business Development CONTINUED ON PAGE 12

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Center (SBDC) at St. Cloud State University, has seen an increase in single-person limited liability corporations (LLCs) and singleperson business entities. “There are a lot of late-stage boomers who were affected by the recession who maybe had a skill or a hobby and were laid off of a traditional workforce and then were forced to become a solopreneur or a one-person business entity,” he said.

The Millennial generation is also pursuing the solopreneur path, sometimes part-time. “Many of them are college educated, and there aren’t enough jobs to match what they’re looking for,” said Kirchoff. “And many of them have seen their boomer parents being laid off, downsized, transferred, whatever. With their grasp of technology and the commercialization of being able to work online, it was a natural for them to pursue solo entrepreneurism.”

In many cases, solopreneurs start their one-person shops because they have a particular passion and see an opportunity to turn that passion into full-time work. Harry Rothstein, who started Customized Business Development in St. Cloud last fall, had worked for a materials supplier and distributor to the construction industry for more than three decades. There, he had “performed every task humanly possible,” and had become a minority owner. It was a secure existence providing a good, steady income.

“ With their grasp of technology and the ability to work online, it’s a natural for millennials to pursue solo entrepreneurism.”

FUNDING THE FUTURE The Initiators Program will nurture a new generation of entrepreneurial leaders.

There are plenty of talented, entrepreneurial-minded young people looking for opportunities to do well—and good—in their communities. If they don’t find those opportunities, they’re likely to leave.

That’s a worry in Greater Minnesota, where longtime leaders are aging. And it’s one that the Initiative Foundation is addressing through its new Initiators Program.

The idea is modeled on Echoing Green, a New York-based nonprofit that funds and supports endeavors that use business goals to address social needs. One Minnesota example is Baby’s Space, a preschool childcare and education program that sells its innovative curriculum kits to other agencies to partially defray its expenses.

Another is Finnegans, a Minneapolis beer brand that gives 100 percent of its profits to anti-hunger programs.

The Initiators Program will target promising 18- to 35-yearolds from Central Minnesota. Fellows who enter into the program will receive a stipend of $30,000 annually for two years along with training and mentorship to help bring their community-building ideas to fruition.

The Initiators Program will be supported through a newly created Initiators Fund. The Initiative Foundation is pleased to announce the first anchor gift to launch the program: a $300,000 investment from Granite Equity Partners.

Rick Bauerly, managing partner at Granite Equity and a member of the Initiative Foundation board of trustees, is helping to drive and shape the program and reverse Central Minnesota brain drain. “It’s a more structured way of mentoring promising people in our region,” he said.

Since its inception, the Initiative Foundation has invested in starting and expanding local businesses that create quality jobs, said Initiative Foundation President Kathy Gaalswyk. “Now we are ready to deepen our support for the next generation of entrepreneurs and innovators who are passionate about improving Greater Minnesota communities.”

The Initiative Foundation plans to formally introduce the program later this year.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 14

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economy continued from page 12

But by his mid-50s, Rothstein wanted to stretch out and have a new challenge. Starting a business had been on his mind for a decade, but he wasn’t sure how to pull together his experiences to create a company.

That doesn’t mean Rothstein was totally in the dark. “I knew I had a lot of relationships with a lot of great people and companies,” he said. “And I had a lot of confidence and experience.”

The idea of going out on his own was nerve-wracking, but after talking with his accountant, and other advisers, Rothstein determined that with his diverse experience, he didn’t need to focus on just one aspect of business in his consulting practice. In fact, he could make that diversity work for him by performing different services for a variety of clients.

Today, Rothstein has four chief clients, which together provide him with a full week’s worth of work, every week. He’s directing business development for a mechanical contractor, restructuring a manufacturer’s sales department and helping manage Catholic Charities’ building projects.

Think Like a Business There are advantages to being completely on your own— you’re not managing employees (not to mention dealing with the bookkeeping that goes with checks and benefits). But it also can be lonely, and require plenty of self-motivation. A successful solopreneur taps advisers who can provide guidance and a sounding

board. For Langerud, that includes the St. Cloud SBDC, an Initiative Foundation grant recipient and micro-loan program partner, among others.

One of the consultants with whom the St. Cloud SBDC subcontracts is Mike Paulus, an MBA who himself is a solopreneur.

Paulus had been working as a nursing home administrator in Arizona when his wife took a job in Minnesota. He decided the time was right to strike out on his own and “do something different,” but where he could use his education and business experience.

Paulus has been a one-man business consultancy since 2008 and has advised a variety of clients from established businesses to solo entrepreneurs.

To Paulus, budding solo entrepreneurs—a category that includes photographers, authors and others who’ve been able to parlay their passions and hobbies into a livable income—should put together a plan to maximize their opportunities.

“They should analyze the market they want to go into, how they fit into that market,” Paulus said. In addition, solo entrepreneurs should identify “what makes them a little bit different.” In other words, he added, “solopreneurs should run their businesses as a business, and not simply as being out there working a job.”

That approach has spelled success for Rothstein. “I had felt boxed up—I wasn’t able to use all of my God-given talents and abilities,” he said. “I wanted to help more people, in different ways.”

Working on his own, he believes he’s able to do just that.

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philanthropy

THE EAGLE’S NEST: Volunteer Sue Hix has been devoting her time, enthusiasm and fundraising skills to the wildlife refuge for more than 20 years.

Wild for a Cause The Friends of the Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge ensure that a natural gem gets the audience it deserves.

By Larry Schumacher | Photography by John Linn

Michelle Garcia knew the name Sue Hix even before she began her job as the visitor services manager at Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge last December.

“She’s well known in the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service,” Garcia said of Hix. “On my first day, she walked up and introduced herself.

She was very warm and welcoming.”

Such an introduction wouldn’t be anything out of the ordinary for fellow co-workers. But while Garcia is a Fish & Wildlife Service employee, Hix and her husband Dean Kleinhans have been volunteers at the refuge since they moved to the Princeton area 21 years ago.

“Volunteers are very important to the Fish & Wildlife Service,” Hix said. “About 20 percent of the work done on the refuge is done by volunteers. At ours, volunteers do the work of four full-time equivalents.”

Hix and Kleinhans began helping out at the 30,700-acre refuge soon after the founding of the Friends of Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge in 1993. They picked up trash, took water samples,

and basically did anything that was asked of them. Fifteen years ago, Hix began serving on the Friends board, rising to board president last year.

The Friends worked with the Fish & Wildlife Service to provide educational programming about the refuge’s oak savanna, wetlands and the Big Woods, a maple and basswood forest, as well as the refuge’s plant and animals. They set up shop in the only available building on the refuge—a run-down former schoolhouse that had bats, wasps, a failing septic system and a leaky roof.

The group also began lobbying the Fish & Wildlife Service regional headquarters in Bloomington to build a new learning center, but lean government budgets made it a tough sell, according to Kleinhans.

Ongoing Support In 2008, the Friends began a $6 million campaign to raise money to replace the building and build a new headquarters for staff. When the bottom dropped out of the economy, the campaign stalled, according Carol VanHeel, a close friend of Hix and the current Friends treasurer.

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philanthropy continued from page 16

“ There’s no organization I’d rather work with.”

“So we went back to begging the government to build it,” said VanHeel. “They kept saying we were next on the list.”

In 2010, the Friends approached the Initiative Foundation about setting up a fund that would allow them to raise money for the eventual replacement of the learning center. They also explored the creation of an endowment to provide financial support to agencies supporting the refuge. With the Foundation’s help, the Friends established an Agency Fund.

“Agency funds give nonprofits an opportunity to safeguard their original investment while building a stable funding stream for their future programs and operations,” said Eric Stommes, vice president for External Relations at the Initiative Foundation. With an Agency Fund, organizations are able to leverage the Initiative Foundation’s investment and administrative expertise while …

• Protecting the organization’s endowed monies for future needs.

• Providing annual income, depending on market performance.

• Demonstrating to donors a commitment to long-range financial planning.

• Providing a way for donors to give complex gifts such as stocks, life insurance or property.

• Increasing investment yield, since the endowment is pooled with the Initiative Foundation’s other endowment funds to provide maximum return and lower fees.

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“Through the creation of this Agency Fund, the Friends of the Sherburne Wildlife Refuge have benefited by receiving significant, sophisticated gifts to the fund—stocks especially—that the Initiative Foundation has experience handling,” Stommes said. “We take care of all the details so they can just focus on achieving their goals.”

Last year, the old schoolhouse was condemned and burned to the ground in a firefighter training exercise. The Fish & Wildlife Service put together $1.5 million to build a new learning center, but the job of raising funds to make it more than just a bare-bones building would fall to the Friends.

“Basically, we’re getting an empty building, and it’s up to us to fill it,” said Brad Johnson, the current Friends president. “So, we’re launching the ‘Be Wild’ campaign to raise $250,000 to make sure it has what it needs when the doors open.” The list of needed items is long and includes tables, chairs, audio/video systems, nets, field guides, 3.5” binoculars and more, said Hix, whoSize: stepped x 2.5” | Maximum Font 30down pt as Friends president to lead the fundraising campaign.

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floating dock, interpretive signage, handicapped parking and native plant landscaping.

“We want the people who come out here to get a better appreciation for nature and a love for the refuge,” said Johnson.

The new learning center is under construction, with a substantial completion date targeted for the Oct. 3 Fall Wildlife Festival, which takes place at the refuge every year. The center will be open only when an organized group visits the refuge or during special events. It’s not meant to be a visitor center, though it will include a much larger Friends store to sell branded merchandise to raise funds for the group.

The old learning center entertained roughly 100,000 visitors per year, but the new one should mean that many more people will experience the refuge’s beauty.

“The wildlife refuge offers so much to so many people throughout the year,” Stommes said. “If you like the outdoors, it’s a great place to go. And it’s wonderful to be able to say that the Initiative Foundation helps to support this great natural resource right here in Central Minnesota.”

Hix’s leadership on the fundraising campaign was key to the initiative’s success, according to Garcia. “Sue embodies enthusiasm,”she said. “Wherever she goes, people feed off her energy and get excited about the Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge.”

That enthusiasm stems naturally from the refuge’s stunning landscape and the people who love it. “It is a beautiful place but,

beyond that, once you get involved as a volunteer, there’s no organization I’d rather work with,” said Hix. “They treat volunteers so well and you feel very supported and appreciated, like you’re part of something bigger than yourself.”

FURRY FRIENDS: Volunteers make sure the education center does the best job it can for visiting school classes.

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2ND QUARTER 2015

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Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP) Funding Opportunites $100,000-$1,000,000 20% Local Cash Match

Eligible Applicants Local Units of Government Tribal Governments

Eligible Projects include Trial Construction Signage/Infrastructure Rail to Trail conversion Turnouts/Overlooks Safe Routes to School Infrastructure Scenic Byways

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Serving all of Minnesota and Beyond

Bike trails bring healthier lifestyles and economic opportunities to Central Minnesota.

By Lisa Meyers McClintick | Photography by John Linn & Bill Jones

DRIVING DOWNHILL: Mountain bikers bank through the distinct red dirt at Cuyuna Country State Recreation Area near Crosby.

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2ND QUARTER 2015

TRAIL BLAZERS: LeAnn Cummins and Ron Plinske moved to Central Minnesota to take advantage of the region’s world-class biking opportunities.

On balmy spring days and summer evenings, chances are good you’ll spot Ron Plinske and LeAnn Cummins rolling and banking along adrenaline-pumping trails through land that was once part of Minnesota’s three Iron Ranges.

Reclaimed by nature and rugged enough to look like the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, Cuyuna Country State Recreation Area in Crosby (northeast of Brainerd) draws both mountain bikers and paved-trail riders who come for views of lush green woods, the glittering blues of six natural lakes and 15 spring-fed former mine pits and iron-red dirt that inspired the Twitter hashtag #shredthered.

“These trails are just beautiful,” said Plinske. “The way they follow the land gives them a natural flow.”

He and Cummins, both lifetime bicyclists, were on the verge of retirement and considering a move to either Arizona or Colorado.

But they became so enamored with Central Minnesota’s world-class 22 Initiative Foundation Quarterly ifound.org

trails, outdoor recreation and warm welcome that they moved from the Twin Cities to Brainerd-Baxter.

In addition to enjoying the trails, Cummins and Plinske also volunteer their time, helping kids and adults of all ages learn about mountain biking through the Department of Natural Resources’ (DNR) I Can! program. They hope to add biking and birding classes and a winter fat-tire workshop.

Plinske and Cummins are the kind of hands-on, involved residents every community craves but sometimes struggles to attract.

When promoting themselves to this breed of newcomers, towns from across Central Minnesota have learned that bike trails and other recreation options can tip the scales in their favor, especially when it comes to persuading active millennials to put down roots and raise their families in smaller communities.

As bikes hum through pastures and woods, the trails are creating a quiet but steady pedal toward prosperity. And we’re not just talking about new economic opportunities decades after mining and railroads have left the region. Bike trails also knit towns together and improve the health and quality of life of residents.

In fact, Minnesota has once again been named the second most bike-friendly state in the country, behind Washington. The rankings

GRANTS TO GET YOU GOING

he Initiative Foundation supports trails and the T economic and community development opportunities they present. Communities that have received planning and implementation grants during the past 15 years include: • Annandale • Baxter • Brainerd • Cambridge • Cold Spring • Crosby • Lake Shore • Little Falls • Milaca • Nisswa • North Branch • Pierz • Princeton • Royalton • St. Cloud • Staples • Stearns County • Taylors Falls • Walker

AARON HAUTALA: “It looks like an REI commercial up here.”

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“ Access to great recreational amenities is both an economic engine and magnet to help attract and retain skilled workers to our region.”

by the League of American Bicyclists cite the state’s educational and policy efforts to promote biking.

“The Initiative Foundation recognizes that access to great recreational amenities is both an economic engine and magnet to help attract and retain young families and skilled workers to our region,” said Don Hickman, the Initiative Foundation’s vice president for community and economic development. Through different programs, the Foundation has supported a number of trail projects, including those in the Cuyuna Range Recreational Area and the proposed Veterans State Trail, which would go through the city of Randall and circle Camp Ripley.

When you add the benefit of tourism dollars, trails become a double win for towns that could add B&Bs, microbreweries and other attractions that cater to a younger, more active crowd. That’s certainly the hope for Crosby (pop. 2,367), which experienced the loss of mining jobs and the town’s historic identity when ore mines shuttered in the late 1960s. Today, the town is crowded with outof-town vehicles with bikes strapped to bumpers. Near Serpent Lake, Cycle Path & Paddle beckons visitors seeking maps or renting equipment to explore Cuyuna Country State Recreation Area.

“It looks like an REI commercial up here,” said Aaron Hautala, the president of Cuyuna Lakes’ Mountain Bike Crew and the creative director of Brainerd’s RedHouse Media, which has been doing regional branding for more than 15 years. The community honors its mining heritage with Cuyuna trail names such as Drag Line, Sand Hog and Timber Shaft, and there’s a nearby Croft Mine Historical Park for visitors wanting to learn more.

Trail Heads

Central Minnesota is at the forefront of the national bike trail movement, having earned a Best Trails State award in 2010 from

American Trails, a national nonprofit that advocates for all types of trails. The 49-mile Heartland State Trail, which links Cass Lake to Park Rapids, was among the first projects through America’s Rails-to-Trails movement—a nationwide effort to convert abandoned rail corridors into public trails—when it began construction in 1974. That trail runs into the Paul Bunyan Trail, which stretches 121 miles from Brainerd to Bemidji, making it the longest continuously paved trail in the United States. Last year, the Paul Bunyan State Trail expanded to the south by six miles, making it easy for Crow Wing State Park visitors and campers to bike into downtown Brainerd.

As the trail spools north, communities can be found about every seven to 10 miles, which is how often trains would need water or fuel. Those do-able segments make trails popular with recreational bicyclists, who enjoy pedaling past lakes, pastures, wetlands and woods, not to mention capping an outing with cinnamon rolls at Freeport’s Charlie’s Cafe, ice cream sodas at The Chocolate Ox in Nisswa and sandwiches and pie at Jordie’s Trailside Cafe in Bowlus.

“You can be a long-distance biker and get in 100 miles a day or go a short distance with the kids,” said Andrew Korsberg, the state trail program coordinator with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.

New Networks

The future for Central Minnesota trails includes linking major routes with the proposed Veterans State Trail, which will circle Camp Ripley between Randall and Little Falls. Like a missing piece of a puzzle, the trail will link the Paul Bunyan and Soo Line Trails, which then connect riders to the Heartland, Migizi, Central Lakes and Lake Wobegon Trails.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 44

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The Camp Ripley/ Veterans Trail would start in Crow Wing State Park and encircle Camp Ripley, including Pillager. It then goes south through Little Falls, ending at the Soo Line Trail near Royalton.

Supporters view it as the missing link between two other arteries in Minnesota’s trail network: the Soo Line Trail to the south, and to the north, the Paul Bunyan State Trail, which eventually is planned to connect to Crow Wing State Park.

entral Minnesota is at the C forefront of the national bike trail movement.

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OUTSTANDING ENTERPRISE Joel Bauer (left) and Tim Burg are committed to skill-building at Midsota Manufacturing.

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HEROES At a time when businesses worry about a shortage of skilled workers, one Central Minnesota manufacturing company proves that taking a chance on untested talent can be the road to prosperity.

By Gene Rebeck | Photography by John Linn

Midsota Manufacturing is one of Avon’s most notable business citizens. In a city of about 1,400, it employs 75. Don’t be surprised if the company needs to expand yet again as demand for its specialty trailers and related products continues to climb.

Last year, Midsota moved into a new building that the city of Avon helped it find. Since the move, the company has more than doubled its payroll. What’s particularly remarkable, and one of the chief reasons why the company is so highly valued in Avon, is how it has grown its employee base. “We do some things differently than a lot of other companies,” said Joel Bauer, who co-owns Midsota with Tim Burg. “We hire a lot of guys who have no welding experience whatsoever, and find that sometimes those can turn out to be the best.”

One of those guys is Travis Maile. Maile joined Midsota about three years ago after working in the concrete industry. He originally was placed at Midsota through a temp agency, but owners Bauer and Burg soon saw his potential. After working in finishing, sandblasting and parts, the owners moved Maile to the welding crew. And he thrived.

“They moved me around a lot and found my strengths,” Maile said. “They put me with people who could teach me how to weld, and now I love what I do.”

Bauer and Burg’s commitment to job and career development made Midsota Manufacturing the clear choice for the Initiative Foundation’s 2015 Outstanding Enterprise Award. “Midsota provides good-quality jobs with livable wages, and they’ve been expanding,” said Dan Bullert, business finance office with the Initiative Foundation. The Foundation helped Midsota purchase its new building, which it moved into last summer.

MIDSOTA MANUFACTURING AVON

Hometown

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“ We hire a lot of guys who have no welding experience whatsoever, and find that sometimes they can turn out to be the best.”

If Midsota hadn’t found that new building, it might have been forced to leave Avon, where it had been operating successfully for a decade.

A FULL LOAD OF GROWTH Midsota began more than three decades ago as a small welding shop down the road in Albany. Founder Gerald Sand sold the company in 1998. Four years later, the new owners renamed it Midsota Manufacturing, reflecting its ambitions.

Midsota manufactures heavy-duty hauling trailers for both the commercial and residential markets. Its commercial trailers are purchased by contractors, landscapers and construction companies— “anyone who’s using a trailer for a commercial application where they use it day in and day out,” said Bauer. Midsota’s customers, he added, seek a “higher-end, high-quality trailer at a reasonable price. A lot of the industry has gone to who can build the cheapest trailer out there.” Midsota uses heavyweight steel and rectangular-tube framing, and incorporates higher-end components such as hoists in its dump trailers.

The founder of the company that became Midsota started making hydraulic dump wagons for farmers who needed small but tough trailers for transporting rocks they picked out of their fields.

(Midsota still makes these “rock wagons,” though it has added some 28 Initiative Foundation Quarterly ifound.org

refinements over the years.) Over time, customers began asking for additional products, such as equipment trailers, and the company steadily added to its offerings.

It has a remarkably broad product range, including skid loader trailers and specialty attachments such as brush cutters for Bobcats. It also continually introduces new products, most recently a trailer for transporting scissor lifts, such as those used by electricians or garage door installers.

Four years ago, in response to customer demand, Midsota introduced its Nova Series line of what Bauer describes as “homeowner-grade” trailers—still sturdy, but using lighter-weight steel. Midsota also makes custom trailers. Last winter, for instance, it designed and manufactured a hybrid hauling trailer comprising a 14-foot dump trailer attached to a 12-foot front-end enclosed trailer for a Tennessee lawn-care customer. The enclosure includes gasoline cans and mowing equipment; the trailer in the back allows the customer to haul gear and yard waste.

Most of Midsota’s products are sold through dealers in the Upper Midwest. But that dealer network has been growing the past few years: You can now buy Midsota haulers in the Pacific Northwest, Florida and even Alaska. Midsota also operates its own retail store in Avon.

A NEW HOME That steady success meant that by 2005, Midsota had outgrown its Albany facility. It was a “patchwork building,” Bauer recalled, and as Midsota grew, the space became inefficient. Midsota found a building in Avon just north of Interstate 94 that had been occupied by a stainless-steel tank fabricator, which gave the company additional square footage and a more centralized operation.

There was just one problem: Demand continued to boom.

When the company moved to Avon, it employed 10. By 2014, that number had tripled, and Midsota was once again bursting at the seams. Though it had added on to the building to the point that it reached 33,000 square feet, the structure, Bauer noted, was “a little broken up with additions, so it wasn’t a great flow-through operation.” Once again, the company needed to move.

But where? Midsota couldn’t find anything that worked at first, and it didn’t have much room to expand its current building.

Constructing a new facility “was a little bit out of the budget,” Bauer recalled. There also wasn’t much room in Avon, period.

“I know how hard getting property for an industrial business was going to be,” then-Mayor John Grutsch said. Nine lakes border the city and give Avon its distinctive charm, “but they hinder our opportunity to expand.” Midsota had become “one of our major employers, and providing pretty good jobs for local people,” and it was crucial to do what Avon could to keep them in town.

Avon leaders hunted around and found a building on the south side of the interstate that was occupied by a millwork company. Soon, the city was able to make a happy call to Midsota—the millwork company was preparing to leave the building, and it looked like what Midsota had been seeking.

“It was refreshing to come across this building right across the road, which turned out to be a very good fit,” Bauer said. The new building features a straight floor plan measuring 80 feet wide and 600 feet long, which Bauer said makes it “great for flow.” It sits on a property with an additional six acres that’s used for trailer storage and could even accommodate future expansion.

In mid-2014, the city of Avon loaned Midsota $250,000 from its revolving loan fund to help facilitate the move and the facility refurbishment. This low-interest loan will be paid back over a few

years. The Initiative Foundation added a $110,000 loan and provided grant funds for an international-market research project conducted for Midsota by St. Cloud State University.

The new building’s 50,000 square feet of space can accommodate the company’s arsenal of high-end equipment, which includes a robotic welding “cell” and plasma cutters. The move and refurbishment were completed over the summer, and the company remained in production from the other site. On Aug. 1, 2014, Midsota began production in its new building.

It’s shaping up to be another big year for the company. Bauer said that by the end of the current model year, which ends June 30, Midsota expects to produce about 2,500 trailers—a 25 to 30 percent increase over the previous year. And that growth, of course, has meant many more jobs.

SIGN OF SUCCESS That growth also means Midsota still needs to use the building it had planned to leave. Though Bauer said the goal was originally to move all of its production to the new facility, the company’s continuing success requires it to manufacture three of its trailer lines in the old building.

All of this is good news for Avon. “It would have been a shame to have this company leave our town,” Grutsch said. “It’s a very good company—there are good people who own it. They employ good people who live close to the area and pay them a really good wage.

Having them move somewhere else would have been hurtful to our community.”

Passing motorists on Interstate 94 can see Midsota’s building near the Highway 9 interchange. “I hear comments all the time from people saying, ‘Holy buckets, what’s happening there?’ ” Grutsch noted. The numerous specimens of Midsota’s trailers provide not only an advertisement for its products, but also as a sign that Avon is home to a remarkable manufacturing business.

“They needed to expand, and they were able to expand in the same community in which they’ve been located,” Bullert said. “To be able to maintain your growth in your hometown is certainly beneficial to the community.”

“ It’s a very good company—there are good people who own it. They employ good people who live close to the area and pay them a really good wage.”

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OUTSTANDING GENEROCITY Chuck Christian’s family, including his wife Barbara (center), are upholding his commitment to the people and town of Rogers.

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OPTIMISM In good times and bad, a man with a huge heart made sure people could have a future in their hometowns. Now his family is carrying on his legacy.

CHUCK CHRISTIAN FAMILY

Unfailing

By Andy Steiner | Photography by John Linn

When Robin Richardson and her four siblings were growing up, sometimes their dad, Chuck Christian, would hear about a neighbor who needed help. His response? Pile the kids in the car.

“With five of us kids, there were a lot of hands,” Richardson said, with a laugh. “ Maybe somebody needed their garage painted or a spring cleanup or their leaves raked. We’d go and pitch in. That’s what you do, my dad said: ‘You help each other. It’s a community.’”

Christian’s commitment to helping people in and around his hometown of Rogers grew naturally from what he learned as a child, according to Richardson. His own hard-working parents always did what they could to help others, even though they didn’t have a lot of extra money on hand.

“It’s the family way,” she said.

This lifelong commitment to support his community in times of struggle and happiness made Chuck Christian, who died unexpectedly in 2013 at age 75, the clear choice to receive the Initiative Foundation’s 2015 Outstanding Generosity Award. Christian’s family, which continues to carry on his legacy of generosity, accepted the award in his honor.

“My dad truly cared about his community,” Richardson said. “He made people feel special at whatever place they were in their life. With his actions, he passed on that attitude to his family. His smile is imprinted on all of our hearts.”

BORN HAPPY While some people are happy because life has been good to them, Chuck Christian’s loved ones say he was born happy—and that perspective was obvious in everything he did. Not that he didn’t face his share of hard times: His father died working as a carpenter during the construction of North Memorial Hospital and his mother died in a kitchen fire. While such tragedies might derail some people’s optimism, Christian was naturally resilient. He focused

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INVEST LOCAL Chuck Christian was a driving force behind the Three Rivers Community Foundation, a Turn Key component fund of the Initiative Foundation.

Established in 1989, the Greater Elk River Area Foundation grew out of the idea that a community foundation can spur economic development by investing directly in the area it serves. Renamed the Three Rivers Community Foundation (TRCF) in 1991, the foundation focuses its funding in four areas: Social, Cultural and Leisure; Public Issues and Information; Human Services; and Education and Lifelong Learning.

The Initiative Foundation permanently hosts and invests the assets of the TRCF endowment and assists the board with administration, fund development and grant-making.

These services allow volunteer leaders to focus on meeting community needs and enhancing the local quality of life.

“ He had a can-do attitude that was contagious, even during economic ups and downs.” on living the life he had now and not getting mired in the past.

“My dad’s belief was, ‘You have to carry on. You can’t let things bring you down,’” Richardson said. “All his life, that was his attitude.

He was just positive about everything, to the point where I’d say, ‘Oh come on.’ But that really was his true nature.”

Barbara Christian, Chuck’s widow, says she was drawn to him from the start. The pair met at the Rogers Dance Hall.

Throughout their long marriage, Christian’s good humor rarely faltered. And he brought that positivity to his interactions with his family, neighbors, employees —and anyone else he met.

“Chuck always made other people feel good,” Barbara said. “He made them feel that they were wanted, that they were liked, that they were part of humanity, that their ideas were the greatest. He thought it was important that people knew that they were good.”

That optimism flourished in the 1970s, when Christian founded two local businesses: Christian Realty and Christian Builders. As those companies became successful, he dedicated himself to giving back financially to the community that had supported him all his life. As a member of the Rogers area Chamber of Commerce and the Lions and the Rotary clubs, he led fundraising drives for several major projects, including, most recently, the Rogers Veteran’s Memorial, which was dedicated just months after his death.

Christian was also a founding member of the Three Rivers Community Foundation (TRCF), a component fund of the Initiative 32 Initiative Foundation Quarterly ifound.org

Foundation that’s devoted to improving the quality of life for people in Elk River, Otsego, Rogers and Zimmerman.

A NATURAL SALESMAN Lifelong friend Jack Hines, founder of the Rogers-based metal fabrication company Decimet Sales, said that Christian’s naturally outgoing, gregarious nature made him hard to resist. If he was in charge of a fundraising project, donations were sure to come in.

“If Chuck got involved with anything, he would fundraise for it,” Hines said. “He was very good at raising money. He was a natural salesman. He was comfortable walking up to someone and saying, ‘Will you give me a thousand dollars for this project?’ He loved doing it.”

His hard work helping to found TRCF made Christian a perfect candidate to join the board of the Initiative Foundation, said foundation President Kathy Gaalswyk.

“Chuck’s impressive commitment to helping his community was in alignment with the mission of the Initiative Foundation,” Gaalswyk said. “He wanted to help communities thrive and grow. He wanted to make sure that people can have a future in their hometown.”

Richardson says that her father was particularly proud when the Three Rivers Community Foundation endowment reached the $1 million mark. The foundation weathered tough economic times during the recession, but thanks in part to Christian’s persistence, it eventually cleared that major financial hurdle. “It was a big deal,”

“His smile is imprinted on all of our hearts.” said Richardson. “For my dad, raising all that money felt great. It was like, ‘Wow. Now we can really make a difference.’” Richardson, her husband and her nephew continue to serve as board members.

Christian’s death—the result of a blood clot following a routine hernia operation—took the entire community by surprise. “When he died,” Hines said, “people were just shocked.”

More than a year later, his family is still recovering, but they are committed to carrying on his legacy in any way possible.

“Because I grew up with my dad, I want to give back, too,” Richardson said. “I want to make a difference in my community and see it grow. That’s one way I’d like to further his memory.”

Barbara Christian says that’s just what her husband would have wanted.

“To give back to the community was one of the things that Chuck wanted to do most with his life,” said Barbara. “He wanted to put the city of Rogers on the map.” Through his work with the Initiative Foundation, he was able to achieve that—with his trademark good-natured attitude.

“If I were to describe Chuck in one word, it would be ‘fantastic,’’ Barbara said. “He just made you feel good. And a lot of people say that sometimes they were crabby, but when they saw Chuck, they knew it was time to be happy — because he wanted to be happy. He was happy in everything he did.”

PRICELESS GIFTS Christian’s unfailing optimism was a key asset to his work with the Initiative Foundation, according to Gaalswyk. “Chuck had this incredibly positive energy and cheerful spirit,” Gaalswyk said. “He was always smiling, always joking, always encouraging other people. He had a can-do attitude that was contagious, even during economic ups and downs. That’s a big part of why he was such a magnet. So many people liked to be around him.”

In their retirement years, Jack Hines and Christian often traveled together, going to international Rotary and Lions conventions in faraway places such as China, Taiwan, Australia and New Zealand. Not long before Christian died, they took a 21-day trip to Europe.

“As we got older, our wives didn’t want to travel so much,” Hines said. “But Chuck and I still had the travel bug, so we’d leave them at home. He was a great companion. Chuck was one of those guys that when he walked into a room anywhere in the world, he was shaking hands and laughing and giggling. He got everyone else laughing and giggling, too. That was just his way.”

NEXT GOAL:

Growth of Three Rivers Community Foundation

RAISE ENDOWMENT TO $3 MILLION.

2013

$1,000

$946 $820

$775

$819

$716 $616

$567 $481

$486

$511

$489

$597

1997

$852

$902

2000

SURPASSED THE $500,000 MARK

SURPASSED THE $250,000 MARK

SURPASSED THE $1 MILLION MARK

$1,144

Since its inception, Three Rivers Community Foundation has awarded more than $150,500 in scholarships and $460,928 in grants for a total of $611,428 (as of 2014)

$405

$309

$125 $90

$60

$41

$37

1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014

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OUTSTANDING NONPROFIT LLTC grant administrator Courtney Aitken Gifford, President Dr. Don Day and Bill Blackwell, the director of institutional advancement.

34 Initiative Foundation Quarterly ifound.org

TRY

When business smarts meet team spirit, opportunities for students and the community soar.

LEECH LAKE TRIBAL COLLEGE

The College

By Laura Billings Coleman | Photography by John Linn

The print shop at Leech Lake Tribal College (LLTC) vibrates at a steady hum, publishing calendars and class syllabi, annual reports and alumni magazines, fundraising letters and fliers for pancake breakfasts. Once limited to tribal college staff who needed a quick turn-around for study guides and campus materials, the print shop’s lineup of daily projects is now so constant that customers must pay a special rush rate to push their own job to the front of the line.

Even more surprising, the print shop’s clientele is now split nearly 50-50 between on-campus customers and individuals and businesses from the surrounding Cass Lake community and Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe. “Last week, we had $4,000 worth of jobs, which is not something we’ve seen before,” said Bill Blackwell, the director of institutional advancement at LLTC, who helps oversee the operation.

Very soon, Blackwell and the staff expect the majority of their business will come from those local customers, who no longer have to drive to Bemidji to get their printing jobs done.

“It’s become a profit lever for us because now people in our community are realizing we’ve got the equipment and the expertise to do the work right here,” he said. “It may not be the most glamorous place in the world, but it’s becoming a blueprint for other business we can do across the campus.”

COFFEE VS. COPIES That entrepreneurial spirit is just one of the reasons Leech Lake Tribal College deserves recognition as the region’s Outstanding Nonprofit this year, said Linda Holliday, the vice president for organizational development at the Initiative Foundation. “Leech Lake Tribal College has exemplary leadership and there are a lot of very innovative and effective initiatives happening at the college right now,” she said. “Their print shop project is just one of the

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GROWTH & RETENTION: The 2015 Leech Lake Tribal College graduating class is on the leading edge of a positive trend: a 30 percent increase in enrollment since 2011.

“ Anything that makes the community think about the college is a good thing.” opportunities that’s adding to this sense of optimism at the college, and showing the community that it’s a positive place to learn and grow.”

The roots of the project began in 2013, when Leech Lake Tribal College was among the first flight of organizations chosen to take part in the Financial Resiliency Through Social Enterprise (FRSE) program launched by the Initiative Foundation. Created in the wake of the recession, one of the goals of the program is to help leading regional nonprofits build more sustainable revenue streams that can support them during bumpy economic cycles. Since then, a cohort of campus leaders from LLTC have taken part in a series of FRSE business-development training sessions with other nonprofit organizations in the region. “Leech Lake Tribal College sent a solid team of leaders through all of the training, and they weren’t shortsighted about their decision-making approach,” said Holliday.

“They took an asset-based approach to making business decisions and creating a sound business plan.”

Early on, the FRSE team from Leech Lake Tribal College considered starting a coffee shop in Cass Lake—a business they believed could serve as a bridge between downtown Cass Lake and the campus situated a few miles away. But the team soon concluded that the cost of launching a new enterprise didn’t add up—particularly after the sessions with their FRSE business consultant showed that they had a great asset worth developing right on campus.

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“People are always saying print is dead, but as the person in charge of fundraising, I can tell you, print is not going anywhere,” said Blackwell. “And as a minority Native American-run business, we have people on campus who can do really cool design work within a cultural context.” The Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe began turning to the print shop for producing materials for the band’s more than 9,000 enrolled members, said Blackwell, “and it started to grow from there.”

To build on that success, Leech Lake Tribal College invested a $10,000 Initiative Foundation grant in additional equipment and training to expand the print shop’s capacity. They also worked closely with a consultant who helped LLTC create a business plan built on a set pricing schedule, allowing them to create quick estimates for clients, while ensuring the operation would also make a profit. Blackwell says the business plan aligned with the tribal college’s nonprofit mission by providing employment and educational opportunities students while serving as a resource for the wider community.

“One of the things you hear in a lot of organizations like ours is ‘we’re a nonprofit so we can’t make money,’ but that notion is a really outdated way of thinking,” Blackwell said, noting that nonprofits are expected more than ever to identify opportunities to generate earned-income revenue. LLTC is adding more staff hours and has a marketing plan to spread the word. “We really look at the print shop of as a way of enhancing the funds we can bring into the college, but

also as another means of getting people on campus,” said Blackwell.

“Really anything at all that makes the community think about the college is a good thing.”

STRENGTH TRAINING That entrepreneurial philosophy is the driving force behind many new initiatives at Leech Lake Tribal College, according to President Don Day, who was appointed to the role in 2012. A former director of the American Indian Resource Center at Bemidji State University, Day’s to-do list in his first year included the launch of a new intercollegiate sports program at LLTC, with basketball teams for men and women players.

In their inaugural season, the men’s “Lakers” roared into the Northern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (NIAC), sweeping their division and earning coach Brady Fairbanks NIAC Coach of the Year honors. Now bumped up into a more competitive bracket, and playing against schools with 10 times the enrollment of LLTC’s, the Lakers have had a more humbling year—but it hasn’t hurt the community’s enthusiasm for the region’s newest sports team.

“Everybody likes to root for their home college team—it doesn’t matter if you’re Indian or non-Indian, male or female,” said Day, who was pleased to see so many students wearing LLTC’s new “Laker” themed jerseys and T-shirts on a recent visit to Cass Lake-Bena High School. He’s even happier to report that of the 26 students who enrolled at LLTC specifically to play ball, the two-year community college has retained 24 of them who are student athletes in good standing. “I thought it would be a good way to galvanize the community, and to drive enrollment, and it’s done both,” he said.

With about a $10 million annual budget, LLTC has long been a major employer and economic driver in the region, a trend Day believes can expand through profitable partnerships that combine both the tribal college’s Anishinaabeg values and traditions with community needs. For instance, LLTC has just introduced a new two-year forestry program designed specifically to train future employees for the Chippewa National Forest, which occupies nearly three-quarters of reservation land.

The tribal college will also be looking for new ways to build the principals of social entrepreneurship into existing programs. Every year, for instance, LLTC carpentry students build a 900-square-foot house that they sell at the end of the program. “In the past we’d just charged our costs in lumber and materials,” Day said, but with the popularity of the “tiny house” movement, “there’s a good chance we could double, triple, or quadruple that in the future.”

Days believes projects like that “work perfectly into the mission and viability of our college,” where 94 percent of students are Native American. “With our budget, we could make about a million in profits and we’re not even close to that right now, so we do have plans to expand,” Day said. “As president, I have to be concerned about the academic quality of the college, and the retention and graduation rates at our school. At the same time I have to run this as a business that has enough money to stay open. That’s part of our mission, too.”

A CULTURE OF SUCCESS: The tribal college in 2013 launched successful women’s and men’s basketball teams that are housed in a joint academic and athletic facilities building.

“ This college has to be run like a business that has enough money to stay open. That’s part of our mission, too.”

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OUTSTANDING COMMUNITY (From left to right) Teacher Cindy Stolp, Pine Technical College President Robert Musgrove and Becky Maki, the director and early childhood coordinator of Pine City Community Education.

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GROW

An investment in early learning + a coalition of leaders = one thriving community.

By Laura Billings Coleman | Photography by John Linn

Teacher Cindy Stolp was trying to find a clever way to boost kindergarten readiness in her community of Pine City when she spotted a possible solution parked in a dealer lot in Bloomington.

“It was a bus with everything we had been looking for,” said Stolp, a member of Pine City Area Early Childhood Coalition. “When I first saw it, it was like it had a big halo over it.”

That halo effect is even more pronounced now that the bus has been transformed into the Dragon Wagon, a rolling preschool that promotes Pine City’s community-wide effort to ensure that every child in the area has the skills to succeed in kindergarten. Every week and throughout the summer, the Dragon Wagon parks in front of libraries, family-run day cares and mobile home parks, wheeling out literacy-boosting sensory tables, toys and story books for the preschool kids who come to greet it. Now starting its third season, the Dragon Wagon typically welcomes 25 kids every week through the school year, and nearly 70 a week through the summer months.

“We’re just blown away by the welcome we receive when we come driving into a neighborhood,” said Becky Maki, director and early childhood coordinator of Pine City Community Education. “When I drive it in a parade, people are waving like crazy and saying, ‘Oooh, the Dragon Wagon is coming!’ This bus allows the school to extend beyond its borders and say we’re not just a building, we’re part of this community and we want to connect.”

Pine City’s commitment to its youngest citizens has made it the 2015 recipient of the Initiative Foundation’s Outstanding Community award. “When everybody knows our collective responsibility of raising kids, as they do in the Pine City area, we all do better,” said Tammy Filippi, early childhood associate at the Initiative Foundation. “They’ve realized that early childhood is one of the best investments a community can make—not only financially, but cognitively and emotionally as well.”

PINE CITY MINNESOTA

Ready to

OUSTANDING

COMMUNITY 2ND QUARTER 2015

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“ One of the lessons we’ve learned is that you should never give up on a good idea.”

READY TO LEARN The Dragon Wagon is just the latest iteration in a communitywide literacy initiative that geared up in Pine City nearly a decade ago, as area educators began to see that almost half of the five-yearolds coming to school for the first time each fall weren’t meeting the benchmarks for kindergarten readiness.

“Forty percent of our kids just weren’t ready,” said coalition member Melissa Felland, an early childhood education instructor at Pine Technical & Community College. “Kindergarten teachers know all about how to teach 5-year-olds their A-B-C’s and 1-2-3’s, but if a child coming to that classroom has never been read to, or been part of a group, they’re starting way behind,” she said. “It means you’ve got kids who don’t know how to keep their hands to themselves, they don’t know how to listen, and how to wait their turn. If you don’t have those skills you’re not going to be successful in the classroom, and there’s a lot of catching up to do.”

With the help of an early childhood education grant from the Initiative Foundation, Maki, Felland, Stolp, Pine Technical College President Robert Musgrove, and other civic leaders formed a work committee exploring ways to make parents in the Pine City area aware of the importance of early learning experiences, and to galvanize community support around the issue. Early on, they wanted support from the local business community, but they knew they needed a compelling business plan.

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Enter Art Rolnick, former senior vice president and research director at the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, and co-author of a landmark 2003 study showing that investing in quality early childhood education for disadvantaged kids can provide doubledigit returns on investment, cutting the crime rate, easing the burden on taxpayers and paving the way for a productive workforce.

Invited to speak to the Pine City area business community in 2006, Rolnick helped make the case that early childhood education should be everybody’s business. “Those of us in education respond to the moral argument that investing in children is the right thing to do, but not everyone in the business community speaks that vocabulary,” said Musgrove. “What Art gave us was the vocabulary of economics.”

BREAKING BARRIERS Quality preschool experiences can be costly, which is one reason why coalition members expected finances to be a major barrier to early learning access in Pine County, where nearly 16 percent of residents live below the poverty line. “Originally, we were going to mimic what Rolnick and the Minnesota Early Learning Foundation were trying to do in the Twin Cities, and that was to offer scholarships to families,” Musgrove said. “But Cindy Stolp happened to be doing her master’s degree on barriers to early childhood education in the area, and she discovered that

transportation was just as much of a barrier to parents as cost.”

Since many students destined for Pine City classrooms live in sparsely populated rural areas, where parents rely on at-home day care or other family members for child care, the coalition considered the possibility of providing bussing to and from a preschool experience—a cost-prohibitive program that would have cost upwards of $25,000 a year. “So that’s when we hit on the idea of bringing the mountain to Mohammed,” said Musgrove. “We thought if we could get a mobile preschool and rotate it around to child care centers that were willing to work with us, and park in open spaces at the mobile home community, we could deliver these quality preschool experiences for kids.”

BUILDING THE BUS Putting a preschool experience on wheels proved to be easier said than done. First, the coalition learned they would need a vehicle built for 14 passengers or fewer, so that volunteers wouldn’t need a special license to drive. Concerned about buying a potential money pit, they also determined they needed a bus with a gas engine instead of diesel, so that repairs and maintenance could be performed by automotive students at Pine Technical College. The search for the right ride took so long that some coalition partners jokingly referred to it as “that damn bus,” Musgrove said. “But in the process, we learned to be patient and resilient about setbacks.

One of the lessons we’ve learned as a group is that you should never give up on a good idea.”

The whole community pitched in once the bus was purchased.

Students from Pine City High School rechristened it the “Dragon Wagon” in honor of the school’s mascot, and two art students, Michaela Miller and Natalie Kolling, came up with the design concept for the bus’s colorful exterior. Students from Melissa Felland’s early childhood education program at Pine Tech made a class project of researching and selecting the sensory toys and classroom tools that would give them the biggest bang for their educational buck. Meanwhile, Pine Tech automotive students tore out unneeded seats and Pine City High School and ALC industrial arts students retrofitted the interior with purpose-built preschool furniture and hardware. Paid for with funding from

the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe, East Central Energy, Pine City Horizons, Minnesota Energy Resources, Pine City Schools and the Initiative Foundation, the primarily volunteer-run Dragon Wagon is powered on a budget of less than $5,000 a year.

“We do an amazing amount with a tiny amount of money,” Felland said.

POSITIVE CONNECTIONS Filippi, the Foundation’s early childhood associate, has watched the progress of the Pine City Area Early Childhood Coalition closely. She believes their leadership provides a useful roadmap for other communities trying to build community engagement with education. “They’ve worked on making deeper connections with parents and child care providers in the Pine City area, to make sure that these children have an easier transition into school, and a real familiarity with the school system,” she said.

From showing up at community events, to handing out books at well-baby visits, coalition members have discovered that these welcoming gestures can help reframe the relationship parents have with the school system. “School was tough for some parents, but everyone wants what’s best for their kids,” said Stolp. “We see the Dragon Wagon as a stepping stone to changing how people perceive school.”

Building positive relationships with families years before their kids show up in kindergarten is also helping connect families in the Pine City area to services such as speech therapy that students may be eligible for even before they’re in the classroom. “If you don’t bring your child to a preschool screening until they’re 5, and then you start school the next week, we’re missing those opportunities to make a difference,” said Felland.

As the coalition’s work moves forward, members see the value of moving these interventions even farther back on the timeline, building a community support system that carries kids from birth to graduation. “When you have a college in your town, you have to ask how can we help those kids to be ready to walk in those doors someday?” said Felland. “You have to back it up and look at what can we do from early on to help.”

EARLY INVESTMENT, BIG DIVIDENDS About half of Minnesota children who enter kindergarten each year are not fully prepared to succeed, according to studies by the Minnesota Department of Education.

Building on more than a decade of collaboration, the six Minnesota Initiative Foundations—with ongoing support from the McKnight Foundation—have made a sustained commitment to the Minnesota Early Childhood Initiative. Composed of 90 coalitions based in more than 300 sites around the state, the Early Childhood Initiative (ECI) coordinates activities to improve learning outcomes in each region.

The Initiative Foundation supports 16 early childhood coalitions in Central Minnesota.

2ND QUARTER 2015

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“We’re going to see the gelling of trails and a whole network,” said Jan Lasar, publisher of Minnesota Trails magazine. Lasar can see first-hand the popularity of the Soo Line Trail from his home office in Bowlus, and has come across cyclists from England, Germany and U.S. states from Alaska and California.

Organizations such as the Adventure Cycling Association already help bicycling enthusiasts from across the globe plan multi-state and cross-country trips through Minnesota. The Mississippi River Trail Scenic Bikeway, where bicyclists can follow the river from northern Minnesota to the Gulf of Mexico, is also gaining momentum and support from the Minnesota Department of Transportation. “People will come from a long distance to ride here, and that’s only going to get bigger and better,” Lasar said.

Biker Towns

The most successful biking communities are those that look at the big picture. “The whole community needs to be bike-friendly, not just have a great trail that ends at the edge of town,” said Dorian Grilley, executive director of Bicycle Alliance of Minnesota.

Stearns County and the city of St. Cloud, for example, are working to bring bicyclists near downtown dining, shops and lodging by connecting the Lake Wobegon Trail to the Mississippi River corridor and Beaver Island Trails.

Little Falls is making itself more bike-friendly with bike racks themed to fit their location, such as Lindbergh State Park and the Minnesota Fishing Museum. Touright Bicycle Shop opened this spring and is off to a good start. The League also ranks Minnesota as the nation’s second most bike-friendly state, topped only by Washington.

Brainerd’s commitment to biking earned it a 2013 honorable mention from the Washington D.C.-based League of American Bicyclists.

While it’s not always easy to track the monetary payoff of trails, a 2009 DNR study showed Paul Bunyan Trail visitors add an estimated $1 million to the local economy each year. DNR statistics from 2014 estimate that state and regional bike trail users spent

“ People ride it and say, ‘Holy cow!’ That wasn’t a trail. It was an experience.”

44 Initiative Foundation Quarterly ifound.org

$425 million on trip-related costs to help support Minnesota’s $13 billion tourism industry.

In Crosby, the economic impact of the Cuyuna mountain bike trails is still building. On Facebook, Hautala urges fellow bikers to write a “Thanks for supporting the trails” note on their receipts at places such as North Country Cafe so that business owners know what brings customers through their doors.

The International Mountain Bicycling Association (IMBA) spent years planning Cuyuna’s 25 miles of trails, which include options for every ability, and may expand to 75 miles with more funding. It’s the only IMBA facility in Minnesota and one of only 27 ride centers across North America.

“People ride it and say, ‘Holy cow!’” said Hautala. “‘That wasn’t a trail. It was an experience.’”

Starting this summer visitors will have more options for staying overnight with three new yurts at the recreation area to offer a less-rustic experience than the existing first-come, first-served sites at Portsmouth Campground. By July, True North Basecamp plans to open seven new camping cabins. Designed to look like mining shacks, the cabins will overlook Armour #2 Mine Lake and be within walking distance of downtown Crosby, said owner Dan Jurek, who also will open 33 campsites that can be reserved.

“We really want to put Cuyuna on the map as a fitness destination,” Jurek said.

Bike trails could also fuel a revival in small-town living.

“Good bicycling and walking trails are an indicator of quality of life,” said Grilley. “community and business leaders know they can use trails to attract the people, businesses and families that will keep them strong.”

KLUNKERS UNITE: The annual Cuyuna Lakes Klunker Ride & Festival of Trails draws enthusiasts to downtown Ironton. This year’s festival is Aug. 8.

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Our community, our home.

ANDERSON BROTHERS Family Fund

With over seventy five years of fostering community growth, we’ve become attached to the communities we’ve helped build. The Anderson Brothers Family Fund, administered in partnership with the Initiative Foundation, helps strengthen the regional economy, works to preserve the environment, and supports the children and families in central Minnesota.

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46 Initiative Foundation Quarterly ifound.org

SPECIAL THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS. OUTSTANDING GENEROSITY

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OUTSTANDING COMMUNITY

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Initiative Foundation vice presidents Linda Holliday and Don Hickman launch the event by welcoming our 400-plus guests.

Barbara Christian, whose family accepted the Outstanding Generosity award, mingles during the pre-show reception.

The Initiative Foundation’s community and economic development team.

Emmanuel Oppong and Eunice Adjei-Bosompem

Pine City Area Early Childhood Coalition members accept the Outstanding Community award.

Board of Trustees member Charles Black Lance

48 Initiative Foundation Quarterly ifound.org

Robin Richardson accepts the Outstanding Generosity award from Initiative Foundation President Kathy Gaalswyk.

Neal Cuthbert of The McKnight Foundation

Board of Trustees member Mayuli Bales

Andrea Goedderz and Courtney Aitken Gifford

Jennifer Wagner and Nicole Rasmussen

Leila Shurts and Board of Trustees member Steve Shurts

2ND QUARTER 2015

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Midsota Manufacturing’s Tim Burg (left) and Joel Bauer accept the Outstanding Enterprise award.

Initiative Foundation planned giving officer Mike Burton (left) and Jim Anderson of Anderson Brothers Construction.

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The Initiative Foundation would like to extend a sincere thanks to our sponsors, our award winners and everyone in attendance who helped celebrate Central Minnesota greatness.

Special thanks, too, to Grand View Lodge, Range, QuarterTon Productions and Dee’s Professional Decorating Services for making the awards night a huge success.

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MISSION: UNLOCK THE POWER OF CENTRAL MINNESOTA PEOPLE TO BUILD AND SUSTAIN THRIVING COMMUNITIES. INITIATIVE FOUNDATION | 405 FIRST ST. SE | LITTLE FALLS, MN 56345 | (877) 632-9255

IFOUND.ORG

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OUR COMMITMENT DEAR Friends, Thank you for sharing your time, talents and resources— this year, and every year. You’re powering possible and improving the quality of life in the 160 hometowns and two tribal nations that make up the 14-county Initiative Foundation service area.

What is important to you—healthy children, quality education, living-wage jobs and thriving communities—is equally important to us. It’s been that way for three decades. And with the vision and guidance of a diverse and informed board of trustees, the Initiative Foundation will be a mighty presence for decades to come.

Through your giving spirit we’ve seen the Foundation’s endowment grow to $46.3 million and total assets reach $63 million. Interest earnings and other financial diversifications allow us to make smart and impactful investments throughout the region.

It’s evident in our grants program, which has distributed $28 million since the Initiative Foundation’s inception to create opportunity and reduce barriers. And it’s evident in our loan programs, through which we have invested $46 million in 932 locally owned businesses. These investments have leveraged an additional $290 in private investment—all for the greater good of the local economy.

28 Years of Impact 1986-2014

As our demographics shift, it’s increasingly important that we make way for our up-and-coming leaders. Our yearlong Emerging Leaders program for 18- to 35-year-olds encourages generational diversity while helping participants discover new ways to thrive at work and within their community.

To complement the Emerging Leaders program, the Initiative Foundation in 2015 is launching the Initiators Program—a two-year partnership that provides a stipend, education, mentorship and resources for promising individuals to develop and launch their social enterprise and business ideas.

It’s about social impact. It’s about strategic investing. It’s about you, your quality of life and your community. We want to make Central Minnesota a destination of choice to live, work and play.

Thank you, as always, for your past and future support.

LARRY KORF Board Chair

KATHY GAALSWYK President

$28 MILLION 7,200

$46 Million

invested in 932 locally owned businesses

awarded through 4,626 grants

$290 MILLION

leveraged in private investment

$9.6 MILLION held in 75 hosted funds

54 Initiative Foundation Quarterly ifound.org

12,300 JOBS secured

community leaders trained

$694,000 awarded through scholarships

OUR PEOPLE Board of Trustees

Larry Korf, Board Chair DeZURIK

John E. Babcock Board Vice-Chair The Bank of Elk River

John J. Babcock Rotochopper

Mayuli Bales Diocese of St. Cloud

Rick Bauerly Granite Equity Partners

Charles Black Lance Central Lakes College

Foundation Staff Kathy Gaalswyk President Kristin Ackley Turn Key Specialist

Reggie Clow Clow Stamping

Linda Eich DesJardins Past Chair Eich Motor Company

Pat Gorham Gorham Companies

Kendra Botzek Program Assistant for Community & Economic Development

Earl Potter St. Cloud State University

Mike Burton Planned Giving Officer

Michelle Kiley Community & Economic Development Specialist

Chris Fastner Program Manager for Organizational Development Tammy Filippi Early Childhood Associate Dan Frank Program Manager for Community & Economic Development Andrea Goedderz Organizational Development Specialist

Steve Shurts East Central Energy

Traci Tapani Wyoming Machine

Wayne Wolden City of Wadena

Lois Kallsen Office & Facilities Coordinator LaRae Foehrenbacher Fund Development Assistant

Barb Downs Grants Specialist

Dan Meyer Atomic Learning

Jolene Howard Information Systems Coordinator

Daniel Bullert Business Finance Manager

Lynn Bushinger Chief Financial Officer & Treasurer

Lee Hanson Past Chair Gray Plant Mooty

Linda Holliday Vice President for Organizational Development

Terri Konczak Early Childhood Dental Network Specialist Kris Kowalzek Accounting Associate MaryAnn Lindell Executive Assistant Amanda Magnan Program Assistant for Organizational Development Bob McClintick Marketing & Communications Manager

Sharon Gottwalt Business Finance Assistant

Eric Stommes Vice President for External Relations

Don Hickman Vice President for Community & Economic Development

Alyson Twardowski Marketing & Communications Assistant Amanda Whittemore VISTA Program Specialist

Our work: Our community, organizational and economic development approach is steeped in the knowledge that economy, community and philanthropy are intertwined. Working with our partners we …

• Provide loans to businesses that create quality jobs • Award grants to nonprofits, local governments and schools • Help generous people give back to their communities • Publish illuminating information on local trends and solutions

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OUR NUMBERS 2014 Financial Summary Uses of Funds: $7,766,145

Sources of Funds: $7,937,705 Grants & Contributions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 3,181,253 Investment Income. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 2,403,877 Business Financing Revenue & Repayments. . . . . . . . $ 2,124,865 Other Operating Revenue. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 227,710

| 40% | 30% | 27% | 3%

Economic Development, Business Financing, Investments.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 3,169,641 Grants, Scholarships. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 1,761,053 Programs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 1,348,039 Foundation Operations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 707,650 Communications & IQ Magazine. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 402,513 Fund Development. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 377,249

| 41% | 23% | 17% | 9% | 5% | 5%

Economic Development, Business Financing, Investments

Grants & Scholarships

Investment Total. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $3,169,641

Investment Total. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $1,761,053

• Manufacturing/Construction.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 1,545,931 | 49% • Healthcare/Service.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 585,625 | 18% • Operations/Technical Assistance… … . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 545,045 | 17% • Retail/Wholesale. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 330,500 | 11% • Technology/Green. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 162,540 | 5%

Turn Key Funds. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 857,063 Innovation Fund. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 352,250 Economic Development. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 156,945 Organizational Development. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 130,000 Early Childhood/Dental Network.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 115,345 Thriving Communities Initiative.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 79,000 Scholarships. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 70,450

Inspire Local Ownership, Quality Jobs

Unlock the Power of People

| 49% | 20% | 9% | 8% | 7% | 4% | 3%

Programs

Create Thriving Communities Investment Total. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $1,348,039 Thriving Communities/Early Childhood. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 535,297 Thriving Organizations Partnership. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 344,801 Volunteers in Service to America. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 298,388 Turn Key Funds/Special Projects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 169,553

| 40% | 25% | 22% | 13%

ENDOWMENT VALUE $45.4 MILLION 49% 18% 17% 11% 5%

TOTAL ASSETS $62.9 MILLION

A complete audit report prepared by CliftonLarsonAllen, LLP is available upon request. For a summary of the Initiative Foundation’s impact on the region since inception, visit ifound.org/about-us/annual-reports.

56 Initiative Foundation Quarterly ifound.org

OUR FRIENDS Initiative Foundation Program & Endowment Contributors 2012-2014 Our connection with you helps us stay true to the promise of our mission: “To unlock the power of Central Minnesota people to build and sustain thriving communities.”

Your support of the Initiative Foundation’s unrestricted endowment fund is the financial backbone of our long-term success. The endowment provides resources each year for staff to work with local leaders to encourage economic development, help businesses get started or expand, provide workforce and leadership skills and build early childhood programs to help communities thrive.

Crimson $50,000+ Blandin Foundation Bush Foundation Cass County City of Hanover - Loan Fund Community Development Financial Institutions Fund Corp for Nat’l & Community Svc Crow Wing County Lessard-Sams Outdoor Heritage Council Morgan Family Foundation Opportunity Finance Network Otto Bremer Foundation State of MN Dept of Emp. & Ec Dev. The McKnight Foundation USDA Rural Dev. Partner $30,000+ Connexus Energy Delta Dental of MN East Central Energy Minnesota Power Stearns County West Central Telephone Assoc.

Principal $20,000+ Benton County BCBS of MN Bremer, St Cloud City of Little Falls Funders’ Network for Smart Growth & Livable Communities GNP Company Isanti County Morrison County Pine County Schlagel, Inc. Sherburne County Wright County Executive $15,000+ Bremer, Brainerd City of Baxter City of St. Cloud Stearns Electric US Bancorp

Leader $10,000+ Anonymous Donor City of Brainerd Clow Stamping Co DeZURIK, Inc. Eich Motor Co Essentia Health Kathy & Neal Gaalswyk Larson Boats Mardag Foundation Mid-Minnesota Federal Credit Union, Baxter Todd County Director $7,500 AgStar Fund for Rural America Arvig, Perham Cambridge Med Ctr City of Elk River City of Milaca City of Monticello City of Princeton City of Sartell First Nat’l Bank, Milaca Manufacturing Fund of Central MN Associate $5,000+ American Heritage Nat’l Bank Avantech Benton Coop. Telephone Co. Brainerd Lakes Area Comm.

Foundation CentraCare Health Foundation Chisago Cty HRA-EDA Citizens State Bank of Waverly City of Long Prairie City of Mora City of Saint Michael CliftonLarsonAllen LLP, Saint Cloud Consolidated Telecommunications Company Falls Fabricating Farmers & Merchants State Bank, Pierz

The Hyduke Foundation of the Saint Paul Foundation on behalf of the Peoples Bank of Commerce LINDAR Corporation Little Falls Area Chamber of Commerce Marco, Inc. MINPACK, Inc. Neighborhood Nat’l Bank, Mora NOR-SON, Inc. Pequot Tool & Manufacturing, Inc. Pine Country Bank, Little Falls SEH, Inc Rita and Everett Sobania Stern Rubber Widseth Smith Nolting & Assoc.

Xcel Energy Foundation Entrepreneur $2,500+ Atomic Learning, Inc Bank of the West, Little Falls BankVista,Sartell City of Becker City of Big Lake City of Braham City of Cambridge City of Clarissa City of Crosslake City of Lake Shore City of Maple Lake City of Melrose City of Menahga City of Pierz City of Rockford City of Saint Joseph City of Sandstone City of Sauk Rapids City of Staples City of Wadena City of Waite Park CliftonLarsonAllen LLP, Brainerd Crow Wing Power Bruce & Mary Fogle Pat & Carmel Gorham David Gruenes Lee & Jan Hanson

Don Hickman & Sandra Kaplan Kanabec County Jo & Larry Korf Medica Foundation Daniel & Sue Meyer Midwest Security & Fire Mille Lacs County Earl & Christine Potter Randall State Bank Rotochopper, Inc. Schlenner Wenner & Co. Todd-Wadena Electric Cooperative Wadena County Gene & Bernie Waldorf West Central Initiative Foundation Investor $1,000+ John E & Nancy Babcock Rick & Helga Bauerly Family Fund of Central MN Community Foundation BlackRidgeBank, Baxter Dick & Mimi Bitzan Family Fund of Central MN Community Foundation Dan & Marie Bullert Lynn & Darren Bushinger Central MN Community Foundation City of Albany City of Albertville City of Annandale City of Backus City of Belgrade City of Bertha City of Breezy Point City of Cass Lake City of Cold Spring City of Eagle Bend City of East Gull Lake City of Emily City of Foley City of Freeport City of Isanti City of Isle

City of Motley City of Nisswa City of Onamia City of Pine City City of Randall City of Rockville City of Sauk Centre City of Sebeka City of Swanville City of Verndale City of Walker City of Waverly Diamond Tool & Engineering, Inc. Donlar Construction Falcon National Bank, Foley Chris Fastner & Kathy Hakes-Fastner First State Bank, Wyoming Dan & Annette Frank Granite Equity Partners, LLC HBH Consultants Happy Dancing Turtle Anita & Brad Hollenhorst Linda Holliday & Harry Brodmarkle Matt & Jeanne Kilian Landmark Community Bank, N.A. Larry & Karen Lundblad McDowall Company Minnesota Econ Dev Foundation Minnesota National Bank, Sauk Centre Shelly Funeral Chapels Inc, Little Falls Steve & Leila Shurts SPEDCO Economic Development Foundation of The Saint Paul Foundation State of Minnesota (AIS) Jan Tenold The Whitney Foundation Unity Bank, Brainerd Mil A Voelker

2ND QUARTER 2015

57

OUR FRIENDS Under $1,000 Kristi & Levi Ackley Adventure Creative Group Alpine Cabinetry, LLC Anderson Center Duane & Barb Anderson Anonymous Donor John J & Debbie Babcock Mayuli & James Bales Lori & David Barron Jason Bernick Ebert Construction Charles & Kathryn Black Lance Katy & Steve Botz Kendra & Josh Botzek Braham Area Chamber of Commerce Brainerd Lakes Area Chamber of Commerce Bridges of Hope Harriet Isobel Brown Marsha Bunger & the late Bob Bunger Central Lakes College Central McGowan City of Avon City of Belgrade City of Bowlus City of Brooten City of Burtrum City of Center City

Continued from previous page

City of Chickamaw Beach City of Clearwater City of Cokato City of Delano City of Eden Valley City of Fifty Lakes City of Garrison City of Genola City of Grasston City of Grey Eagle City of Hackensack City of Hanover City of Harding City of Henriette City of Hewitt City of Hinckley City of Holdingford City of Howard Lake City of Ironton City of Jenkins City of Kimball City of Lindstrom City of Longville City of Manhattan Beach City of Montrose City of Motley City of Nimrod City of Otsego City of Paynesville City of Pease

City of Pequot Lakes City of Pillager City of Remer City of Rice City of Richmond City of Rock Creek City of Royalton City of Rush City City of Saint Martin City of Saint Rosa City of South Haven City of Stacy City of Taylors Falls City of Upsala City of Wahkon City of Wyoming City of Zimmerman Core Value Consulting, LLC DeGraaf Financial, Inc. Sara E Dahlquist Virginia Duel East Central RDC Alison Edgerton Don & Deanna Engen Tammy Feige Filippi & Pete Filippi LaRae & Tom Foehrenbacher Frandsen Bank & Trust, Baxter Jeff Fromm Ray & Gwynne Gildow Glenn Metalcraft, Inc. Lee & Colette Goderstad

Andrea Goedderz Brad Goskowicz Chuck & Sharon Gottwalt Gramstad Homes, Inc. Gray Plant Mooty Douglas Larsen & Cathy Hartle Lois & Chuck Head Tricia & John Holig Jolene Howard & Ben Blooflat IPEX, Inc. Catherine E. Jackson Lois & Len Kallsen KDV, Ltd. Cheryl A. Key Michelle Kiley Mike Kneeland Michou F Kokodoko Terri & Dennis Konczak Kris & Ken Kowalzek Lake Country Synergic Elizabeth F Larsen MaryAnn & Peter Lindell Pamela Mahling Mahowald Ins Agency Bob & Lisa McClintick Bob & Terri McLean Microbiologics MN Business Finance Corp.

The Moran Family Fund of the Central MN Community Foundation

Endowment Contributions

$9 9 4 09 5,

GOAL

$1,2 7 0 ,00 0

Thanks to 334 generous donors, the Foundation has raised more than $995,094 in endowment contributions, representing more than 77% of our five-year goal (2012-2016).

58 Initiative Foundation Quarterly ifound.org

James D Muchow Municipal Development Group Walter & Adele Munsterman National Joint Powers Alliance Robert & Marilyn Obermiller Onanegozie RC&D Council, Inc Abdirahim Osman Martin & Susan Paradeis Katrina L. Pierson Pine Tech & Comm College Region Five Dev Comm Katie & Tom Riitters Elise Ristau Eric Rittmann Julie Schueller & Brian Pederson James & Wendy Shear St. Cloud Tech & Comm College Start Early Funders Coalition Eric Stommes Traci Tapani Christopher & Beth Thorson Dianne C Tuff Blake & Alyson Twardowski Unity Bank, Staples US Bank Foundation Sandy Voigt Wayne & Lori Wolden Mike & Connie Wood Lynda Woulfe

OUR PARTNERS Loans & Equity Investments The Initiative Foundation invested $2.5 million in 28 locally owned businesses in 2014.

Through those loans, 315 quality jobs were secured and $22,374,040 in private investment was leveraged.

AJ Metalworks, Inc. dba AJ Outdoors, LLC­—Crosby Automotive Parts Solutions, Inc.—Rockville Battery Wholesale, Inc.—St. Joseph BK Properties, LLC—St. Michael CNC Cops, LLC—Becker Havco, Inc. dba Seitz Stainless—Avon Hibbs Properties, LLC—Princeton Legacy Place, LLC—St. Cloud LEI Packaging, LLC—Chisago City Mala Mills, LLC—Pierz Maple Lake Veterinary Properties, LLC—Maple Lake

Midwest Enterprises of Central Minnesota LLC dba Midsota Manufacturing, Inc.—Avon New Earth Technologies, LLC—Brainerd New Ventures Enterprises, LLC—Becker North Star Properties of Pequot Lakes, LLC —Pequot Lakes On the Wing Investments, LLC dba Syvantis Technologies—Baxter Palmer Properties, LLC, Rice Probar Properties, LLC dba Interior Components Group, Inc.—St. Cloud River Systems, LLC—Wadena

Team Solara, Inc.—Little Falls The Asphalt Company, Inc.—Monticello The Club’s Thrift Store, Inc.—Little Falls Total Wellness Coaching, LLC—Cambridge Touchstone Home Inspection—Sauk Rapids Wolf Properties L.L.C. dba Wolf Auto, LLC—Buffalo Woodard Enterprises, LLC dba Sunrise Laundry —St. Cloud Woods Property, LLC dba Woods Farmer Seed & Nursery—St. Cloud Zimmerman Veterinary Clinic, Inc—Zimmerman

Turn Key Funds The Foundation currently hosts 73 Turn Key component funds valued at $9.6 milliion. These funds allow donors to focus on charitable needs while leaving the administrative tasks to the Initiative Foundation. This partnership ensures that local needs are addressed and all financial transactions adhere to state and federal guidelines.

Community Funds Delano Community Foundation Greater Pine Area Endowment (Pine City) Isle Area Community Foundation Longville Area Community Foundation Endowment Morrison County Area Foundation Rum River Community Foundation (Milaca Area) Staples-Motley Area Community Foundation Three Rivers Community Foundation (Elk River) Education Funds Cuyuna Lakes Education Foundation (Crosby-Ironton) Pillager Education Foundation Sauk Rapids-Rice Education Foundation The 482 Education Foundation of Little Falls Community Schools Donor-Advised Funds Anderson Brothers Family Fund (Brainerd) Bob & Marsha Bunger Endowment Fund (Milaca)

Bruce & Diane Gohman Fund (Clearwater) Chuck Christian Community Spirit Fund (Elk River) Edeburn Family Fund (St. Cloud) Gaalswyk Family Fund (Brainerd) Granite Equity Partners Fund (St. Cloud) Hanowski Family Fund (Little Falls) Jane & Patrick Mitchell Foundation (Cold Spring) John & Bonnie Schlagel Endowment (Cambridge) Josh Richardson Family Fund (Elk River) Julius & Tracy Kurpius Fund (Staples) Loren & Kathy Morey Family Fund (Staples) Mark Wood Foundation (Little Falls) Mel & Jeanette Beaudry Fund (Elk River) Scholarship Funds Alternative Sources of Energy Fund (Milaca) Archie & Isabelle Powell Scholarship Fund (Elk River) Betty Ford Menzel Scholarship Fund (Crosby-Ironton)

Beverly M. Pantzke Scholarship Fund (Little Falls) Bob & Pauline Johnson Scholarship Fund (Isle) Bob Wright Memorial IFPA Scholarship Fund (Regional) Holdingford Scholarship Fund Little Falls Scholarship Fund Madden’s Pine Beach Scholarship Fund (Pillager) Pillager Scholarship Fund Shawn Grittner Memorial Scholarship Fund (Little Falls) Staples KoC-Lloyd & Marion Giddings Scholarship Fund William & Ethel NelsonZimmerman Scholarship Fund (Royalton) ZES Scholarship Fund (Zimmerman) Committee Advised Funds Crow Wing Environment Protection Advised Fund Thrive Fund (Sauk Rapids-Rice) Nonprofit Endowment Funds Big Birch Lake Endowment Fund Conservancy Fund of Big Fish Lake Association Fund

Conservancy Fund of Roosevelt and Lawrence Area Lakes Association Central MN CEO Fund (Staples) Fish Trap Lake Endowment Fund Friends of Sherburne Nat’l Wildlife Refuge Fund Gull Chain Preservation Endowment Fund Horizon Health Partnership in Life Fund (Pierz) Lake Region Conservation Club Fund (Pierz Area) Land and Waters Preservation Trust (Cass & Crow Wing) Leech Lake Area Watershed Foundation Minnesota Pioneer Park Endowment Fund (Annandale) Paws & Claws Animal Shelter (Hackensack) Quiet Oaks Hospice House Fund (St. Cloud) Sacred Heart-Knights of Columbus Fund (Staples) Wright County Historical Society Fund

Field of Interest Funds Delano Emergency Family Fund Family Farm Fund (Regional) Manufacturing Fund of Central MN (Regional) The Initiators’ Fund Special Projects Hewitt Area Relief Fund Oakland Cemetery Fund (Little Falls) Sartell Wheel Park Fund Sartell DOGPAC Fund Veteran’s Art Project Fund (Camp Ripley) Wadena Regional Wellness Center Fund Business Loan Funds Menahga Loan Fund Princeton Economic Development Loan Fund St. Cloud State University Microlending Fund Todd-Wadena Economic Development Loan Fund Wadena Tornado Relief Loan Fund

2ND QUARTER 2015

59

OUR PARTNERS

Continued from previous page

Grant Awards More than $675,000 was awarded in 2014 to 141 regional nonprofits in support of their critical services and social enterprise activities. Turn Key Fund and scholarship award listings are available on ifound.org.

A Place for You, Pine City Advocates Against Domestic Abuse, Regional Agriculture Utilization Research Institute, Little Falls Amherst Wilder Foundation, Little Falls Anderson Center, Saint Cloud Annandale Area Community Team, Annandale Arc Midstate, Saint Cloud BestPrep, Saint Cloud Boy Scouts of America - Central MN Council Inc, Long Prairie Boys & Girls Club of Elk River, Little Falls Boys & Girls Club of the Leech Lake Area, Cass Lake Boys & Girls Clubs of Central MN, Saint Cloud Brainerd Baxter Youth Center, Brainerd Brainerd Lakes Area Chamber of Commerce Education Association, Brainerd Brainerd Lakes Area Economic Development Corp, Brainerd Brainerd Lakes Area Economic Development Corp, Crosby Bridges of Hope, Brainerd Casa Guadalupe Multicultural Community, Cold Spring Casa Guadalupe Multicultural Community, Saint Cloud Catholic Charities of the Diocese of St. Cloud, Saint Cloud Center for Nonprofit Excellence & Social Innovation (CNESI), Saint Cloud Center for Service-Learning & Social Change, Saint Cloud Central Lakes College Foundation, Brainerd Central MN Council on Aging, Saint Cloud Central MN Housing Partnership, Saint Cloud Central MN Jobs & Training, Monticello Central MN Sustainability Project, Saint Cloud Children’s Dental Services Inc, Saint Cloud City of Becker, Becker City of Big Lake, Big Lake City of Cokato, Cokato City of Crosslake, Cross Lake City of Elk River Economic Development Authority, Elk River City of Foley, Foley City of Hewitt, Hewitt City of Ironton, Ironton City of Isanti, Isanti City of Jenkins, Jenkins City of Montrose, Montrose City of Mora, Mora City of Princeton, Princeton City of Randall, Randall

City of Rockford, Rockford City of Rush City, Rush City City of Saint Martin, Saint Martin Cloverleaf Youth Partnership dba Cyber Cafe, Wadena Community Legacies Foundation, Inc, Sauk Centre Council on Foundations, Regional Crow Wing County Housing and Redevelopment Authority, Nisswa Crow Wing County, Brainerd Cura Center Inc dba New Beginnings, Saint Cloud Eagle’s Healing Nest, Sauk Centre Employment Enterprises, Inc, Little Falls Essentia Health Foundation, Brainerd First American Financial Services on behalf of WCEDA, Sebeka GiveMN, Little Falls Goodwill/Easter Seals MN, Saint Cloud Great River Family Promise, Elk River Great River Greening, Little Falls Greater MN Partnership, Little Falls Greater St. Cloud Development Corporation, Saint Cloud Greater Twin Cities United Way, Saint Cloud Helping Hands Outreach, Holdingford Higher Ground Church, Saint Cloud HOWA Family Center, Walker Industries Incorporated, Mora Junior Achievement of the Upper Midwest, Brainerd Junior Achievement of the Upper Midwest, Little Falls Kanabec County, Mora Lakes & Pines Community Action Council Inc, Mora Lakes Area Habitat for Humanity, Brainerd Lakes Area Interfaith Caregivers, Brainerd Lakes Area Restorative Justice Project, Brainerd Lakes Area Youth Service Bureau, Regional Leech Lake Area Watershed Foundation, Walker Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe, Walker LegalCORPS of Saint Cloud, Little Falls Metropolitan Economic Development Association (MEDA), Little Falls Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe, Onamia Mille Lacs Health System, Onamia Mississippi Headwaters Board, Brainerd MN Assistance Council for Veterans, Saint Cloud MN Council of Nonprofits, Saint Cloud MN Council on Foundations, Little Falls MN Council on Foundations, Regional Morrison County, Little Falls

The Initiative Foundation is certified as a Community Development Financial Institution by the U.S. Department of the Treasury and proudly bears certification from the U.S. Small Business Administration as a Community Advantage Lender. The Foundation meets rigorous national standards established by the Council on Foundations, has attained the highest four-star rating on financial health, accountability and transparency from Charity Navigator and is recognized for meeting standards for accountability and openness through the Charities Review Council.

60 Initiative Foundation Quarterly ifound.org

Northland Area Family Service Center, Remer Paul Bunyan Arboretum, Baxter Pillager Family Council, Pillager Pine County, Pine City Pine River-Backus Family Center, Walker Pine River-Backus School District, Pine River Pine Technical College, Pine City Pokegama Lake Association, Pine City Pregnancy Resource Center of Cambridge, Cambridge Prepare & Prosper, Saint Cloud Prevent Child Abuse Minnesota, Saint Cloud Princeton School District, Princeton RESOURCE, Saint Cloud Richmond Economic Development Authority, Richmond Rivers of Hope, Monticello RiverWorks Community Development Organization, Rockford Roosevelt & Lawrence Area Lakes Association, Emily Rose Country Dental, Inc., Pillager Saint Cloud Area School District, Saint Cloud Saint Cloud State University, Elk River Saint Cloud State University, Monticello Saint Cloud State University, Saint Cloud Second Harvest North Central Food Bank Inc, Brainerd Shepherd of the Lake Lutheran Church, Garrison SPROUT MN, Brainerd St. Cloud Area Somali Salvation Organization, Saint Cloud Staples Motley School District, Motley Staples Motley School District, Staples Stearns Benton Employment & Training Council, Saint Cloud Stearns County Housing & Redevelopment Authority, Belgrade Todd County, Long Prairie Tool Shed Inc, Little Falls Tri-County Action Program Inc, Elk River Tusen Tack, Braham United Cerebral Palsy of Central MN, Saint Cloud United Way of Central MN, Saint Cloud University of Minnesota, Regional Verndale School District, Verndale West Central Initiative, Little Falls Wright County Economic Development Partnership, Buffalo Wright County Economic Development Partnership, Rockford

CROSSLAKE • BAXTER • CROSBY

Real Estate, Business and Estate Planning Attorneys

Lonny D. Thomas | Mark A. Severson | Kurt W. Porter (218) 692-6999

(877) 404-6627

www.tslawpa.com

University of Minnesota and community partners working together to foster sustainability.

Crosby & Baxter Clinic Appointments: 888-420-2778 Longville Clinic Appointments: 218-363-3300 www.cuyuamed.org

2ND QUARTER 2015

61

home made

Granger Machine Inc. Isanti, Minn.

By Sarah Colburn

Mike Parker first began machining work part-time out of borrowed space in his grandpa’s Pine City shop. It was 1994.

Parker was 38 years old and working as a manufacturing engineer at a large industrial equipment manufacturer. He enjoyed taking on overflow jobs that other companies weren’t able to complete in his spare time. And he knew he eventually wanted to own his own company.

Three years later, Parker launched Granger Machine Inc. He incorporated the business in 1998 and expanded into a 5,000-square-foot space in Isanti. His customer base continued to grow and by 2009 he purchased KR Machine, adding more customers, equipment and floor space. In 2010 Parker, with the help of a gap-financing loan from the Initiative Foundation, brought his operations under one roof and doubled his space.

Today, Granger Machine makes an array of components. From banjo frames to high-tech sensors, the company produces parts for national and Minnesota brands, including Nechville Musical Products in Bloomington and Contegra Inc. in Savage. Most recently, Granger’s staff has been working on the machined parts for Stacker, LLC, a Minnesota startup company that is bringing an affordable, commercial-grade 3D printer to market.

“It is very rewarding for all of the team here at Granger Machine when we get to partner with companies in bringing new and exciting products into the marketplace,” said Parker.

We talked to him about grinding it out in such a competitive industry.

62 Initiative Foundation Quarterly ifound.org

In less than 20 years, Granger Machine has grown from a one-person, part-time operation into a multi-million dollar company. In 2014, Granger Machine completed 557,523 custom-made parts for companies.

Raw material goes in, and a finished product comes out.

• One of the biggest challenges at Granger is finding people to work the second shift.

Granger has partnered with the Central Minnesota Jobs and Training Services, a state job-training program, to hire employees who want to do skilled manufacturing work.

Granger also provides in-house training through hands-on mentoring along with a variety of • Granger’s 30 employees serve 40 companies across the country.

• Much of Granger’s raw materials come from Minnesota companies. Raw materials arrive at Granger in the form of rods or flat sheets. The most common materials include stainless steel, aluminum, carbon steels, copper, bronze, brass, acrylic, nylon, PVC, PTFE (Teflon), titanium, tool steel and nickel-iron alloys.

• Engineering specifications are programmed into a computer numerical controlled (CNC) machine.

•G ranger prides itself on completing jobs in just four weeks. Within 24 hours of receiving a drawing or engineering file from a customer, Granger is able to quote a price and begin work immediately, supplying most customers with anywhere from 20 to 2,000 finished pieces.

• The industries Granger provides parts for are growing and contribute to the company’s annual 10 to 20 percent growth in sales.

2ND QUARTER 2015

63

where’s IQ?

THINK YOU KNOW? Send your best guess to IQ@ifound.org

by July 15, 2015.

Three winners will be chosen, at random, to receive a $25 GiveMN.org gift card to support the charity of their choice.

HINT: At the northwest corner of Lower Cullen Road and Park Street Congratulations to everyone who correctly recognized the Annandale clock tower and statue in downtown Annandale. The clock tower was built in the 1980s by Lakedale Telephone Company. The clock tower’s initial purpose was to house the latest technology of that era.

In 2012, with dedicated volunteer leadership, valuable private donations, and the support of the City of Annandale, the area around the clock tower was converted into an community gathering place – Clock Tower Park.

Joleen Sytsma, Nicole Pilarski and Angie Thaxton are the lucky winners of GiveMN.org gift codes.

64 Initiative Foundation Quarterly ifound.org

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