C05: Nurturing a Community and its People Through Rural, Place-based Philanthropy
Track
Supporting Nonprofit Resilience
Session Designer
Sonja Merrild, Blandin Foundation
Session Description
As grantmakers, we talk a lot about place-based philanthropy. Much of our current field knowledge comes from urban and neighborhoodfocused initiatives. But how does place-based philanthropy work in rural areas? How do we strategically deploy foundation resources in support of whole communities? What happens when we don’t define outcomes from the start? In this session, you will learn about work happening in rural, northern Minnesota to provide nonprofits with opportunities to identify and act on their highest priorities for capacity building so that they can serve the region more effectively. Speakers from Blandin Foundation, the largest rural-based and rural-focused private foundation in the state, along with a nonprofit partner and local capacity builder, will invite you to think about the implications for your work when grantmakers commit to a place for the long haul. Guided by critical questions, you will take part in small-group dialogue about place-based philanthropy in your own context and have an opportunity to exchange promising practices with peers.
Session Designers
Sonja M Merrild, Blandin Foundation
Speakers
![[photo]](https://8ca84662c5b8f0cff50d-4baaaf97d63fd7b01243e1b1c57f0cc1.ssl.cf1.rackcdn.com/1187/profile_1bac5e12d89a2ef1422eaa44f9298e7c.png "Kate Barr, Nonprofits Assistance Fund")
Kate Barr, Nonprofits Assistance Fund
Biography
Kate Barr is Executive Director of Nonprofits Assistance Fund, whose mission is to strengthen the community by investing capital and expertise in nonprofits. She oversees strategic and business planning, development, and external relations. Under her leadership NAF has become a premier resource for financing and training, and is a national leader on nonprofit strategy and finance as a speaker, blogger, and author. Before joining NAF in 2000, Kate was a bank executive and an arts administrator. She has been on the adjunct faculty at Hamline University and University of Minnesota and has served on numerous nonprofit boards.
![[photo]](https://8ca84662c5b8f0cff50d-4baaaf97d63fd7b01243e1b1c57f0cc1.ssl.cf1.rackcdn.com/1186/profile_917fab1d706f11535f9c5dcace45568b.png "Sonja Merrild, Blandin Foundation")
Sonja Merrild, Blandin Foundation
Biography
Sonja leads Blandin Foundation’s work to fund Minnesota organizations which seek to grow healthy and vibrant rural communities, and its Education Grants program, available to graduates of Itasca area high schools. Merrild has worked for the WellPoint Foundation, the Marna M. Kuehne and Homer A. & Mildred S. Scott Foundations, and Tailwinds, LLC nonprofit consulting. Her rural nonprofit leadership experience includes board leadership and development, fundraising, and strategic planning for the Center for a Vital Community at Northern Wyoming Community College, Rotary International, the American Cancer Society, and the Wyo Theatre. Merrild holds the Master of Arts in Philanthropic Studies degree from Indiana University and Bachelor of Arts degrees in business administration from the Niels Brock School of International Business in Copenhagen, Denmark and in leadership studies from Bellevue University in Omaha, Neb.
![[photo]](https://8ca84662c5b8f0cff50d-4baaaf97d63fd7b01243e1b1c57f0cc1.ssl.cf1.rackcdn.com/1185/profile_b3302fb029b5563e02d402b782eb45af.png "Susan Estee, Second Harvest North Central Food Bank")
Susan Estee, Second Harvest North Central Food Bank
Biography
Susan Estee is the Executive Director of Second Harvest North Central Food Bank, the Feeding America member food bank in north central Minnesota. Sue has been in this position for 16 years, oversees a $2+million operating budget, 14 employees and over 500 volunteers. Prior to Second Harvest, Sue worked in the agriculture and construction industries, was an entrepreneur and business manager. She has served on the Itasca Economic Development, Grand Rapids Chamber and Hunger Solutions Minnesota boards and a Feeding America national task force. Sue is a graduate of the Blandin Community Leadership Program.