Foellinger Foundation

Helene Foellinger leadership development initiative: since 2016, the initiative has worked to support, strengthen, and inspire allen county nonprofit leaders as they fulfill their missions and address key community challenges. The initiative was designed to unleash the potential in these leaders and help them acquire adaptive skills needed in the future. The Foellinger leadership lab is one component of the initiative and consists of three custom-tailored programs for nonprofit leaders: executive leader program, rising leader program and the sonder fellowship. In december 2024, there were 20 fellows that graduated from the second cohort of the sonder fellowship program. The fellowship provided an innovative leadership development experience focused on supporting leaders of color in allen county. It was designed by a team of experienced leaders of color that together bring deep experience in leading in inclusive and impactful ways. The program coaches created a customized curriculum tha

David a. bobilya excellence in nonprofit leadership award: the Foundation developed the david a. bobilya excellence in nonprofit leadership award to recognize one current or recently retired board member who demonstrated excellence in nonprofit leadership. The award, established in honor of former Foellinger board member and community leader david bobilya, recognizes the importance of nonprofit board member contributions in four focus areas - governance, leadership, financial sustainability, and program impact. A 25,000 operating grant is awarded to the recipient's nominating organization. The luncheon event and associated media campaign showcased 23 community leaders who were nominated for the award. Approximately 200 people attended the event. Suzanne smith, ceo of social impact architects, provided the keynote speech entitled "lessons learned from route 66," which focused on navigating change in an ever-shifting world. Afterwards, she engaged 100 invited nonprofit leaders in a deepe