The Crouse family continues to demonstrate support for their community as earlier this year they chose to give to the students of HIllside School.  Pictured (l-r)   Tracey Vavrek, Dawn Marie Crouse, Kathleen Crouse and David Crouse present a cheque to Gerald Logan of Hillside School.

Anyone who knew Merv understood how he liked to really review his options.  Before making a final decision on anything, he would learn all about it, test it out to make sure it was a good fit, and that it did what he wanted it to do.  It was the same with the Community Foundation."

Since accountability and transparency are the cornerstones of community foundations, I was more than willing to provide Merv and Dawn Marie with all the information they needed to decide if investing in the community foundation was right for them.

The Crouse's also found it reassuring to know that our local community foundation was part of a Canada-wide network of foundations first introduced in Winnipeg in 1921.  Although it was established in Grande Prairie in 1996, the Community Foundation was based on this very successful national model which also gave them access to additional resources to ensure the long-term success of the foundation. 

They also learned that community foundations are built on a base of endowment funds, a kind of savings account dedicated to philanthropy. Gifts to endowment funds are not spent, rather they are invested in the long term savings and each year a portion of the investment return supports local charitable activities.  The remaining income is reinvested back into the fund to provide meaningful community support for future years with a focus on I impacting the whole community.

Convinced that the Community Foundation would allow them to fulfill their wish to invest in Grande Prairie forever, Merv and Dawn Marie signed the Merv and Dawn Marie Crouse Family Fund agreement in February, 2008.    They told me they wanted to recognize the support their family and business had received from the entire community so as a family; they created an undesignated community impact fund. 

In other words, they put their trust in the foundation to invest their funds in areas that would best meet the community's needs, making a positive difference in our communities, and in the lives of the people who live here.

It was so very sad when Merv passed away quite suddenly just two months after signing the agreement.  When Dawn Marie and their six children requested that donors contribute to the Merv and Dawn Marie Crouse Family Fund in lieu of flowers it caused the fund to grow quickly.

With the careful work of the Board of Director's investment committee and contributions from the family and their friends, the fund has grown to a level where it can now begin to support the community.

Recently I was so pleased to be able to tell Dawn Marie and her family that the first disbursement from the Crouse Family Fund was made to Catholic Family Services.  It will be used to support a program entitled "Women's Anger Management" and will be open to anyone in the community.

We are going to continue to invest their community grants in the whole community and we will do this forever.  Merv and Dawn Marie found a way to pay forward the kindness and support their community showed them, just like they wanted.

I continue to meet annually with Dawn Marie and her children to review their fund along with the current needs of the community.  Since the family recognizes that their family endowment fund is for the long-term support of the community, a portion of their annual fund payment also includes an amount to be used for a Community Impact Grant.  These annual grants are issued to charities to help address current community needs. 

Although the community misses him immensely, his legacy of community support lives on.