A picture is worth a thousand words!  We have all heard this phrase, right?

Well a story might just resonate an idea and stir a future gifting plan.  The following are stories from our immediate rural area of people and families that have chosen to implement an idea and start a story that we hope will provide insight and motivation for a future gifts.  Enjoy!

It Can Be Done

THE MARTIN & WINIFRED EHLERS STUDENT LOAN FUND In 1937, Martin Ehlers moved to Redwood Falls, MN. Martin started the Ehlers Department Store in 1938 with the motto “It can…
Jean Ogle

Teacher keeps teaching after her death

Jean Ogle was a bit of a local legend in Redwood Falls. You would see her in the Main Street Cotton Shop at a very advanced age, still sharp as…
PAC Photo - Estebo

It all started with a life insurance policy

When Orrin Estebo’s wife Nancy passed away after a battle with cancer, he discovered she had a $100,000 life insurance policy through her job as a teacher. Nancy Estebo was…
Mike and Jodi Pieschel

The Importance of Giving Back

Mike Pieschel, a banker in Springfield and his wife Jodi established the Pieschel Family Foundation in 1995 by contributing $1,000,000 to the Minnesota Family Foundation to serve as a permanent…

Looking After the Needs of Others

Vernon and Leoma Jenniges, owners of the Jenniges Transfer trucking business, established an educational trust in 1990 with $425,000 that was meant to benefit Springfield area students in post high…

Forever Humble

Irene Schneider was a quiet, reserved person who lived a simple, frugal life in Springfield who made it a habit to share her generosity throughout the community. Miss Schneider had…

All That We Have is Not Ours

Helen Fleischmann was a teacher who grew up in Springfield but lived most of her life in other places but always regarded Springfield as her home. Miss Fleischmann returned home…

The Importance of a Good Education

Donald Reiner was a crop and dairy farmer who did not have any children of his own, but did adopt two boys, nor did he graduate from high school, but…
Henry and Elsie Roiger

Benefitting Generations to Come

Henry and Elsie Roiger were conservative, happy, hard-working farmers who lived a simple life. They lived through the Great Economic Depression and learned to economize. The accumulation of wealth was…