Sustaining Community Success

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We had a celebration of community last night in Fertile, MN. The Bergeson family & Bergeson's Nursery were so kind to host NMF board and staff to celebrate the work done for Sustaining Community Success.

Advisory committee members from Stephen, Crookston, Fertile-Beltrami, Warren, Fisher & Argyle shared their triumphs and tribulations; each community had representatives on hand to network with each other, sharing ideas to help their own endowment continually grow for years to come!


The evening began with a tour of the beautiful gardens, all in their full glory.



The Bergeson Family is very talented. They strummed each instrument with their green thumbs!
And we thoroughly enjoyed the show.

NMF President Nancy Vyskocil congratulated the committees on their success. They have held events, attended fairs, held donor recognition, and followed up on their community visions. She encouraged communities to take advantage of the assitance available from staff assigned to their funds and to not the let opportunity of matching gift dollars be missed.
Former NMF Board Member and current Stephen Area Endowment Fund Chair Bruce Hamnes spoke about the success NMF has had in each part of our 12 county region and explained the extraordinary power of philanthropy to make a difference in the region's quality of life.

NMF Development Officer Caryl Turnow used the apple tree as an example of how endowment works. By planting the apple tree and helping it to grow, fruit can be harvested and used and enjoyed in a variety of ways for years to come. If you cut down the tree and use the wood to build something, the tree no longer bears fruit.

It was a wonderful evening touring the gardens, celebrating success and planning for the future.


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