Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
KENDALLVILLE — The Dekko Foundation, a private family foundation located in Kendallville with a mission of fostering economic freedom through education, awarded more than $1.1 million in grants and pledges to 12 youth-serving organizations during its most recent round of grantmaking.
The foundation, started in 1981 by the late businessman and philanthropist Chester E. Dekko, invests in projects and programs that help build knowledge, skills, and character in children and young people from birth through age 18 so they can be self-sufficient and grow up to be economically free, according to a news release from the foundation.
Its grantmaking is concentrated within 13 counties in four states — Indiana, Iowa, Alabama and Minnesota — where Dekko had business or personal interests.
Local organizations receiving grants and pledges were:
• Lost Sparrows Inc., Winona Lake: $20,000 to support the organization’s annual conference in which educators, youth-serving professionals and parents learn about adverse childhood experiences and how they can aid children’s healthy development.
• Joe’s Kids Inc., Warsaw: $75,000 to support acquiring property for a new campus location that will help the organization meet the growing need for therapy services for children and young people with developmental delays.
If you’d like to learn more about how investments such as these support children and young people so they can achieve economic freedom later in life, contact a Dekko Foundation program officer at 260-347-1278 or visit dekkofoundation.org to explore the foundation’s mission and funding priorities, review its grantmaking process or send a grant proposal.
