Former financial adviser Nadia Cavner announced this morning with Care to Learn founder Doug Pitt she has gifted $100,000 to the Springfield-based nonprofit.
The donation is among the largest gifts Care to Learn has received since it launched in 2007 to provide health, hunger and hygiene services to school children, Pitt said.
The money would be split between efforts to expand the nonprofit’s reach and support its existing programs and services. Pitt said Care to Learn currently serves 25 school districts across Missouri, including Springfield Public Schools.
“One hundred percent of this will go to kids. Our back-office expenses are taken care of, so when we have a gift of this magnitude, it can make a tremendous impact and quickly,” Pitt said this morning.
Cavner said she and her husband, Howard, believe in the mission of Care to Learn.
“To us, it’s a very simple concept, and it reaches the kids immediately. It’s all about kids. Through Care to Learn, children are lifted up and encouraged to learn by having their basic needs met,” Cavner said. “I’m grateful to be in a position to help.”
The announcement comes three days after Cavner released a statement saying she
reached a settlement with Overland Park, Kan.-based Lawing Financial Inc. after about nine months of legal battling in civil court.
Lawing Financial, which acquired Nadia Cavner Group in January 2014, filed suit in April 2015 alleging Cavner disregarded the terms of the deal by continuing to contact and advise its clients. The company also claimed she had overvalued her firm. Cavner, who last year lost her ability to sell securities following a 2013 felony conviction, countersued in August, asserting there were no grounds to say she overvalued the firm or interfered with Lawing Financial’s business.
In its suit, Lawing sought a $1 million refund toward the purchase of her company and to free itself from the additional $2 million owed. Cavner sought damages of $500,000 from the company for her consulting work, at least $75,000 in damages and the remaining $2 million owed for the sale of her company.
Terms of the settlement were undisclosed and Cavner declined to comment on the suit.
“We have no comment about that. This is about our family. These are two separate matters,” Cavner said this morning.
The statement released Friday said Cavner looked forward to continuing to devote her energy to her philanthropic work with the settlement in place.
According to Pitt, Cavner has been a long-standing supporter of Care to Learn. Her previous work with the nonprofit includes helping start chapters in Bradleyville and Hartville.
“She has been extremely generous in her own personal capacity and in family giving, but I don’t want to skip over the fact that in her occupation, behind the scenes, she has driven people to Care to Learn, told people about Care to Learn – people who are looking to invest in their communities and invest in kids – and that contribution to us has been absolutely astounding,” he said.
