Foundation celebrates success of volunteer campaign

Foundation employees gathered with volunteers at a Chadron restaurant Tuesday to celebrate the $188,210 raised during two weeks beginning Oct. 12.

Leslie Bargen, Chadron State College development officer, said the campaign serves as a testament of people’s love for CSC, and that their volunteer efforts help fund scholarships and a wide range of other campus support.

“We at the foundation always enjoy the involvement between the campus and community on this project, and this year is certainly no different,” Bargen said. “We are extremely thankful that so many people are willing to donate their time to help faculty and students build upon CSC’s tradition of excellence.”

Each year, the foundation recruits 124 volunteers to approach businesses and college employees for donations. This year, the group was led by community members Jon Daniels and Tina McLain, and CSC employees Brad Smith and Donna Ritzen.

Bargen presented prizes to the most successful teams, along with a number of humorous honors.

The team winning top honors among the community side consisted of Deb and Jerry Evans, Bob Zahm, Rich Stahla, Tammie Scheopner and Dave Coe. The top team among CSC employees consisted of Lorie Hunn, Dawn Brammer, Brenda Barry-Schommer, Sally Katen, Ryan Baily and Kathy Stokey.

Connie Rasmussen, executive director of the foundation, noted that the annual campaign has grown throughout the years, greatly contributing to the foundation’s overall success.

In her remarks to the volunteers, Rasmussen gave credit to the work of Dick Myers, a longtime Chadron businessman and civic leader for his pioneering efforts with the CS Foundation. Myers died last week after a battle with cancer.

Since 1988, the assets of the foundation have grown from $1.4 million to more than $17 million. During that period, the combined total of funds raised from the annual campaign and the phonathon have grown from netting $186,000 to about one-half million dollars each year.