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Who We Are
The Tiffin
Charitable Foundation is a community foundation. A
community foundation is a tax exempt, publicly supported
charitable organization that operates primarily as a
permanent collection of endowed funds. Grants are made
from the funds to qualified organizations providing
charitable or educational benefits to the community.
In 1914, a
Cleveland banker developed the concept of a community
foundation. This allowed many separate charitable funds
to centralize their administration and thereby reduce
their costs and allow more of their assets to be
distributed to worthy causes in the community. Today
there are more than 700 community foundations in the
United States. The community foundation is the fastest
growing form of philanthropy and is often among the first to
support the emerging needs of its community.
A community
foundation serves three principal groups: donors,
charitable organizations, and the community as a whole.
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It serves
donors by providing a vehicle to establish a permanent
charitable fund. It also allows donors to make
charitable contributions to already existing
charitable funds.
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It serves
charitable organizations by providing technical and
administrative services. It also strives to identify
and address emerging community needs and to make or
encourage grants to address those needs.
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It serves
the community as a whole by promoting local
philanthropy in many forms.
The Tiffin Charitable Foundation was founded in 1983.
Attorney Charles D. “Bud” Hering, Jr. created the
foundation with assistance from Warren Kahn of Fifth
Third Bank. Attending the first meeting were the
following charter foundation trustees: Mrs. Jane Frost
Kalnow, Mr. Gordon C. Wagner, Mr. Fred Corbin, Mr. Fred
Spurck, and Mr. Hering. Mr. Kahn served as secretary.
The foundation has grown to include more than
forty
funds, most created to support a particular charitable or
educational purpose. The current market value of the
foundation’s assets exceeds $13 million. In 2007
grants exceeding $500,000 were distributed to qualified
charitable organizations.
The Chairman of the Board of Trustees is Attorney Paul
Burtis, Vice Chair is Larry Adelsperger, Treasurer is Andrew Felter,
and Secretary is Brent Howard.
The
other trustees are:
Anthony Petrosino, Rebecca Myers, Jeannine Curns, Jerry
Weininger, and Allen Schultz.
If you
scroll down this page you will find bios of the
Foundation's Trustees and Staff.
What We Do
We serve
as a community foundation.
Chartered in 1983, The Tiffin Charitable Foundation has
served as the community foundation for Tiffin and Seneca
County, Ohio.
We help create endowment and other charitable funds.
The wishes of Donors wishing to create a fund are put into an agreement with
The Tiffin Charitable Foundation or defined in the Fund
Donor’s Last Will and Testament or Trust. Individuals,
families, organizations and corporations entrust their
funds and charitable
goals with the Foundation and in return receive many
benefits.
We provide administration.
The Tiffin Charitable Foundation’s Board of Trustees and
its committees meet quarterly to provide professional
oversight of the Foundation and its charitable funds.
Each fund is managed in accordance with the foundation’s
mission statement, governing documents, state and
federal laws.
We supervise asset management.
Professional investment managers are hired to invest
assets for either growth, income, or both. Performance
is reviewed often.
We make distributions, also known as grants.
Every distribution is made according to the written
instructions of the Donor. The Foundation’s Board
of Trustees reviews and approves every distribution to
make sure that it does not endanger the Foundation’s IRS
Code Section 501(c)(3) nonprofit, charitable, tax-exempt
status. Only qualified, nonprofit organizations that
benefit the citizens of Tiffin and Seneca County, Ohio,
may receive grants from Foundation funds.
We help
ease tax burden.
Our IRS Code Section 501(c)(3) status is our community
foundation umbrella that confers the same status upon
every fund accepted into the Foundation. This is
important because it allows Contributors who make
donations to any of the foundation funds to receive
maximum tax benefits.
We help.
Every year thousands of dollars are granted to help make
our community a better place for all of us to live in
and enjoy.
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Paul Burtis is a partner in
the law firm of Dell, Burtis & Anspach, L.L.P. He
graduated from Northwestern University with a B.S.
in Communications Studies and from Indiana
University School of Law in Bloomington, Indiana.
Paul has been involved with the Rotary Club of
Tiffin (past President), the Ritz Theatre (Board
member) and various other charitable organizations
and church activities. Paul is married to Jane
Dell and they have three children: Cecilia, Jack
and Sophie. |
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Allen Schultz is the
Career Pathways Specialist at Sentinel Career
Center. A lifelong Tiffin resident, he
graduated from Calvert High School, Tiffin
University with a Bachelor in Business
Administration, University of Toledo with a
M.Ed., and has earned a Principal Licensure from
the University of Findlay. Allen is involved
with church activities and numerous other
charitable organizations, including
Tiffin-Seneca United Way. Schultz noted that “I
am honored to have the opportunity to contribute
towards the vision and purpose of the
foundation, founded in 1983 by several of our
community’s most distinguished citizens.” Mr.
Schultz resides in Tiffin with children Tracey,
Jay and Austin. |
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Andrew J. Felter is VP of
Manufacturing Operations for Webster Industries,
Inc. of Tiffin, Ohio. He graduated from Tiffin
Calvert High School, has a Bachelor’s of Science
in Accounting from The Ohio State University and a
Master’s in Business Administration from Tiffin
University. Andy’s other volunteer activities
include: Member of the Board of The Betty Jane
Memorial Rehabilitation Center (Treasurer, Past
Chairman); Member of the Seneca County Industrial
Management Council (Vice Chair); and Past Board
member of the Tiffin YMCA (Treasurer). He is a
member of St. Joseph’s Parish in Tiffin; Tiffin
YMCA; Tiffin K of C, and Tiffin Elks. He has a
committed devotion to volunteerism in the
community and has participated in a number of fund
raising activities. Andy and his wife Julie live
in Tiffin with their children Cameron and Sidney. |
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Brent T. Howard is a partner
in the law firm, Supance & Howard. He also has
served as law director of the City of Tiffin since
1995. He is a graduate of Athens High School and
University of Illinois, with an A.B. in Economics.
He received his J.D. at The Ohio State University
College of Law. Brent currently serves as
Secretary for the Charles D. “Bud” Hering, Jr.
Foundation and the Webster Foundation. He is on
the Mercy Hospital of Tiffin’s Board of Trustees
and is Vice Chair. He is Senior Warden of Old
Trinity Episcopal Church, where he also teaches
church school. He is a Junior Achievement
volunteer. He coaches and follows his children’s
sporting events; in particular, YMCA swim meets.
He has served as Trustee of the Tiffin Charitable
Foundation since 1992, serving as Chair from
1992-2002 and Secretary from 2002-present. Brent
and his wife, Susan Hering Howard, are the parents
of Andrew, Samuel, and Natalie. |
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Larry Adelsperger
is Vice President of
Operations of Select Medical Corporation and
former partner of P.T. Services Rehabilitation,
Inc. He is a board member of Optima
Rehabilitation Services and The St. Francis Health
Care Centre Advisory Committee. A lifetime
resident of Seneca County, Larry has served many
community organizations with fund raising such as
the Tiffin Catholic Schools, American Cancer
Society and the Robert "Bo" Reid Athletic Memorial
Fund. He is a member of St. Mary's Parish in
Tiffin. Larry and his wife Jeanne have three
children: Brad, Brian and Angie. In addition,
Larry and Jeanne enjoy the fun and pleasure of
their four grandchildren. |
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Anthony M. Petrosino is Vice
President of Huntington Retirement Services, a division
of The Huntington Investment Company. His background
includes 17 years of professional sales and
management experience, including 10 years in the
investment and retirement plan industry. Tony is a
licensed Investment Advisor Representative, holds
multiple other securities and insurance licenses,
and is a member of the International Foundation of
Employee Benefits. He earned an MA in Audiology
from Ohio University and an MBA from Tiffin
University. Tony has served on the Board(s) of
several area non-profit and charitable
organizations. He resides in Tiffin with his
children AnnMarie and Anthony. |
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Jeannine
Curns retired June 30, 2006, from the position
of Vice President for Administration at
Heidelberg College in Tiffin, Ohio, where her
career spanned more than forty-two years. She
recently returned to Heidelberg to work
part-time as Human Resource Director. Jeannine
was raised in Tiffin, but born in Antwerp,
Belgium. She has served as President of the Ohio
Association of College & University Business
Officers and Tiffin Kiwanis Club, Chair of the
Tiffin Area Chamber of Commerce & SIEDC, and was
honored in 2003 with the Chamber of Commerce
Athena Award. Currently she is a member of the
League of Women Voters, National Association of
College and University Business Officers,
College & University Personnel Association-Human
Resources, and serves on the Board of Directors
of the First Ohio Credit Union. She also
continues her Tiffin Kiwanis Club activities,
enjoys playing golf, reading, knitting and
spending time with two daughters, Lori Fate and
Lynn Hull, and her four granddaughters. |
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Rebecca
Myers was born in Tiffin, Ohio, graduated from
Tiffin Columbian High School, Miami University
in Oxford, Ohio, with a B.S. in Business
Management and Meredith College in Raleigh,
North Carolina, with a Teaching Certification.
She has served as a volunteer at Krout School,
co-director of the Sunday School Program and
Vacation Bible School at First Lutheran Church,
and board member of The Christian Counseling
Center. She currently directs the Krout School
soccer program, employed as a substitute
teacher, and is very active raising children
Cole, Parker and Lauren with her husband, Dave,
in Tiffin. |
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Jerry P. Weininger, Senior
Vice President of Office Administration at the
Old Fort Banking Company, began his banking
career in 1974, joining Old Fort Bank in 1988.
A lifetime resident of the area, Jerry grew up
in Sycamore before moving to Tiffin in 1978. An
active member in the Tiffin community, he has
served on numerous boards, including Tiffin
Rotary Foundation, Tiffin-Seneca United Way,
Tiffin Mercy Hospital, and the Mohawk Golf
Club. Currently he enjoys serving on the Black
Swamp Volleyball Club and the Mercy Health
Partners finance committee. Jerry and his wife
of 29 years, Lori, have two daughters, Nicole
and Kelli. “I am pleased to be a part of this
prestigious foundation. With a variety of
formats to provide assistance, The Tiffin
Charitable Foundation truly serves the needs of
the community”, Weininger stated. |
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Staff

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Foundation Administrator Suzanne Donaldson was
born in Chicago, but raised in and around
Tiffin since 1956. She graduated from Hopewell-Loudon
School, Bascom, Ohio, Patricia Stevens Career
College & Finishing School, Toledo, with a
Public Relations certification and earned an
A.B.T. from Tiffin University. Her career
includes working as a legal secretary, Tiffin
City Council Clerk, first E.D. of Seneca Habitat
for Humanity, and various other administrative
positions. She has served as a board member
and secretary at the Tiffin-Seneca Day Care
Center and First Christian Church, as well as
secretary for the ‘89 Charter Review Commission,
SST Port Authority, and Seneca Kruisers. Other
activities have included Girl Scout Leader, Tiffin
Municipal Court Mediator, Master Gardener, and
member of the Sandusky River Valley
Doll Club. She and husband, Jerry, have two
sons, Pete and Rick, and a daughter, Katy.
Pete’s wife, DeAnna and grandsons Caulin, Dylan
& Owen finish their family, so far. She has
served as the Foundation’s first and only
employee since 2002. |
The Tiffin Charitable Foundation
68 South Washington Street, Tiffin.
Phone (419) 448-1791
Email
adm@tiffinfoundation.org |