Alliance Bank, Francesville, delivered donations totaling $32,500 on Giving Tuesday, the moniker given to the Tuesday after Thanksgiving to encourage contributions to nonprofits and local communities. Each of the bank’s 65 employees got to direct where $500 was donated within focus areas of agriculture, community development and childcare. Based on those choices, contributions were split across 19 nonprofits spanning Benton, Jasper, Pulaski and White counties.
Photo: (from left) Max Jones and Leeann Wright accepted a donation of $8,000 from Alliance Bank on “Giving Tuesday,” Nov. 28, 2023, for the newly formed Childcare Coalition in Pulaski County. Presenting the check were Alliance Bank employees Jessica Broadaway, Ami Derrickson, Kim Marlatt and Kim Shidler.
Centier Bank, Merrillville, donated $11,000 to community organizations in late 2023:
- $1,000 – Center for Healing & Hope: supported the purchase of the medical building where the organization was already operating in Goshen.
- $1,000 – Leadership Lafayette: sponsored the organization’s holiday reception in support of its curriculum based on community awareness and leadership needs in multiple arenas.
- $2,500 – Purdue University Northwest’s Archives and Special Collections: helped the library hire a student to do archival work for one semester. The library not only houses university history but also plays a role in the historical preservation of Hammond and the Calumet region.
- $3,000 – Stepping Stone Shelter for Women: La Porte County’s sole 24-hour shelter, providing support for domestic violence, sexual assault/trafficking victims through its crisis shelter and the Bridge Transitional Housing Program.
- $2,500 – Student Impact: an after-school program and peer group that helps 5th- through 12th-grade students in Westfield build relationships through love and acceptance in a safe and consistent environment.
- $1,000 – Unity Foundation, the local community foundation for La Porte County: supported the Power for Good Fund, which enables the organization to provide funding to qualified nonprofit organizations, governmental bodies and teachers serving the county.
The Farmers Bank, Frankfort, announced a new local scholarship through the Westfield Washington School Foundation in commemoration of the bank’s grand opening of its new Westfield location. The $15,000 endowment will provide a $1,000 scholarship each year to a Westfield High School graduating senior who plans to pursue a business and/or accounting degree.
Photo: Chris Cook, CEO of The Farmers Bank, Frankfort; John Deck, Westfield Educational Foundation board member and treasurer; Amber Willis, Westfield Educational Foundation and WWS board member; Ashley Knott, WEF executive director; Dr. Paul Kaiser, WWS superintendent; and Steven Latour, Farmers Bank Westfield financial center director
Home Bank, Martinsville, closed out 2023 with eight community donations worth more than $47,000 combined as part of its Community Gifting Program:
- $2,000 – Clarity: a non-profit providing pregnancy support and services to women in Morgan and Johnson counties.
- $10,000 – Gathering Together: an organization providing hospice care to those unable to afford the standard nursing home hospice care.
- $7,000 – Heroes Wildlife Adventures: a non-profit based in Morgan County providing therapeutic support to veterans, including assistance with the purchase and training of service dogs.
- $5,000 – Imagination Library: support the establishment of Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library in the Martinsville community, providing free books to children from birth to age 5 to foster a love of reading and improve literacy skills.
- $3,000 – KIC-IT (Kids in Crisis Intervention Team): an organization that serves homeless teens in Johnson County.
- $9,000 – Martinsville City Fire Department: procurement of equipment for MCFD’s live-fire training center.
- $6,000 – Sonshine Kids Daycare: to expand its preschool services.
- $5,150 – Stones Auto Service: a ministry completely staffed by volunteers who provide repair services, specifically targeting single mothers, widows and elderly individuals.
JCBank, Seymour, donated $2,000 in December to the Greensburg Daily News Cheer Fund, which supports families in need. Specifically, the Fund serves children in the community by helping their families enjoy a Christmas that would otherwise be less cheerful.
Photo: Bank representatives present Natalie Acra, Greensburg Daily News, with a check, including (from left) Emma Moffett, Dan Anderson, Marvin Veatch, Jeff Nolting and Amanda Land.
The National Bank of Indianapolis closed out 2023, the bank’s 30th anniversary, with $30,000 grants each to three affordable housing ventures in the community. A grant for the Indianapolis Neighborhood Housing Partnership’s Arnold Place development reduced construction costs on the 33-unit townhome development that will offer market rate and affordable housing for homebuyers earning up to 80% of area median income. The money will also expand down payment assistance for homeowners.
A second grant went to the Englewood Community Development Corporation for Temple Avenue Townhomes, a 13-unit development on the southeast corner of New York Street and Temple Avenue that will offer homeownership opportunities for community members earning 60% of area median income.
The final grant for JEWEL Human Services, a nonprofit arm of Eastern Star Church, will provide housing assistance for the ROCK Initiative, which provides affordable housing and community services near the church’s main campus at 30th Street and Arlington Avenue.
North Salem State Bank donated $10,000 to the Danville Parks & Recreation Department in November. The money will be used to construct a sunshade structure over playground equipment at the Jack Willard Community Park to improve the park’s usability.
The bank donated another $8,885 to the Town of North Salem on Dec. 13 to outfit a new police SUV with the latest emergency vehicle lighting and specialty equipment. The donations were two of several charitable contributions the bank made in 2023 as part of its 100th anniversary celebration.
Photo: (from left) Matt Howrey, bank president and CEO; Corey Shaffer, North Salem Police Department chief of police; Shelby Dorwart, NSSB loan processing; Ashley Ahrens, NSSB retail operations manager; and Dane Dickerson, NSSB commercial lender
STAR Bank, Fort Wayne, announced the third annual Future of Agriculture college scholarship, which will provide five Indiana students with $1,000 scholarships to apply to their secondary education. Students must be a junior or senior in high school or have at least one year remaining in their college or trade school career as of the fall of 2024 to be eligible for the scholarship. Any questions can be directed to Senior Marketing Communications Manager Brad Saleik by email at Brad.Saleik@STARFinancial.com. The deadline to apply is April 22.
