HOT PURSUIT

Seeing is believing.
At least that’s what two area nonprofit organizations are hopeful people are taking notice of what’s happening with their capital campaigns.
The first is Community Pathways of Steele County, the newly formed organization that merged the food shelf and clothesline into one entity. Community Pathways is nearing the end of a $2.6 million campaign to build a new building.
What’s interesting about Community Pathways is that its board went ahead with the building even before achieving the campaign goal. The organization is fortunate to have reserve funds that it could tap if needed to cover the construction costs, but thanks to the generosity of 400 individuals and 50 businesses and churches to date it’s unlikely the reserves will be needed.
Community Pathways is blazing forward in the next 60 days hoping to come up with the remaining $160,000 needed. And with this week’s announcement of a Blooming Prairie area farmer kicking in $25,000 at the end, Director Dom Korbel is hoping that will ignite some fire for those who may have been holding back.
“It’s real,” Korbel shared with me last week as he watched construction workers feverishly putting up the walls on the new Pathways building. “The dream is now a reality.”
While Korbel was excited about last week’s pledged $25,000 donation, he was quick to point out he doesn’t expect many of those to come forward. But instead he stressed how it would take just 25 individuals to put in a $1,000 each to hit the $25,000 mark.
“We hope people will put in an investment to close the deal,” Korbel said.
The other capital campaign in which people are now seeing and believing is the Leo Augusta Childcare Center in Blooming Prairie. Launched by prominent businessman Craig Kruckeberg and his family, Leo Augusta is expected to be open in the old Minimizer headquarters on the north edge of town soon.
The center also received a major, but unspecified donation from a Brownsdale manufacturing company last week.
Director Doug Anderson echoed the same thoughts as Pathways’ Korbel.
“This is real,” Anderson said.
Leo Augusta is hoping to raise $3 million, and while it is only 42% of the way to that goal, Anderson is hopeful it can be done.
And he believes once the center opens, people will take even greater notice.
“They need to see it open with kids in and out the doors,” said Anderson, adding that will begin to happen in early June.
Childcare is one of the greatest stressors identified by workers. And with Leo Augusta having the capacity to take on more than 100 children, it will prove to be a huge benefit to the entire region, including businesses and families.
It’s impressive that the board of directors of both Community Pathways and Leo Augusta has had the foresight to fill important needs in our communities.
All that’s really left is for people, businesses and groups to go in hot pursuit of helping both organizations achieve their capital goals.