We're a bank for charitable funds - a place where people can put their charitable funds or philanthropic assets. We manage them, do all of the administration, help with making decisions on grants. ... We have almost 1,600 funds now, (ranging) from several thousand dollars to many millions of dollars. It just makes a lot of sense to choose a community foundation, because (with) almost $135 million in assets, our operational expenses are spread across that much money (and) are very cost-effective. We have 14 employees; 12 here in Springfield and offices in West Plains. Community Foundation of the Ozarks is kind of the umbrella for 41 community affiliates (and of) the $135 million in assets, nearly half are in our affiliates (and the rest) is local funds.
Tell us about your previous professional experience.
My first job in banking was in 1976 at a bank in Kansas City as a teller. ... I did that for the summer, and the next summer, I got a job at American National Bank. ... I joined Boatmen's in September 1979 and moved back to Springfield. I spent two years at Ozarks Technical Community College in administration ... and then had the opportunity to get back into banking and do some community development, which is what was the appeal to me in going to Great Southern, being able to do community development as I had done at Bank of America. ... I was in banking for almost 30 years.
How does your banking experience translate to your job now?
It's very complementary. Communities need a lot of things to be vital and healthy. They need great leadership, and they also need capital to help them grow. Capital comes in many forms, and some capital comes from banks. ... But you also need some community capital, and there's not enough government money ever, to do all the things that need done. We can help those communities develop philanthropic dollars to make their communities more viable. We provide capital to a community just like a bank does.
What are some ways CFO reaches into communities?
In the traditional foundation sense, you donate money to a fund or to the community foundation, and we would invest those funds in stocks, bonds, hedge funds and things like that. The income from that would be given out as grants. We thought, why don't we take part of our capital and invest it directly into Ozarks communities? Now, 2 percent of our portfolio is committed to mission-related investments, and we'll invest directly in communities. The first deal we did was in July, and we loaned $1 million to a rural hospital to build a new emergency room (to serve) several counties in one of the poorest regions of our state. ... We're also working with a neighboring school district that is wanting to build a very important project to them.
How is the recession affecting CFO?
From July 1 of last year to June 30 of this year, our portfolio return was -16 percent. Compared to our peers, that's very good ... however, we still lost money. But due to some really good prior planning by the staff long before I got here, we actually set a record last year in grants and donations (with) more than $16 million. ... But the other side of that is, our gifts were down. People were losing asset values of their own stocks; we weren't having gifts of appreciated stock like we were in prior years. When people get worried, they kind of pull in their philanthropic (efforts).
How do you encourage giving during a challenging economy?
We really push planned giving. Instead of writing a check today, it's deferred giving for later (through) an estate, a bequest, a charitable remainder trust. Really, that's where the biggest philanthropic dollars will be. In our country, in the next 10 years or so, we will have the largest generational transfer of wealth in history. If we're not thoughtful about that, that money can leave our communities.
Tell us about your family.
Reneé and I have been married 26 years. Our son, Andrew, will be a senior at American University in Washington, D.C., and Betsy's a sophomore here at Missouri State University, and Ellen is a junior at Parkview.[[In-content Ad]]
A relocation to Nixa from Republic and a rebranding occurred for Aspen Elevated Health; Kuick Noodles LLC opened; and Phelps County Bank launched a new southwest Springfield branch.
