Stewart C. Mills, Jr. to be Honored at July 13th Annual Dinner
Brainerd, Minn. – The Brainerd Lakes Area Community Foundation (BLACF) Board of Directors and CommunityGiving are pleased to announce their 2017 Award in Philanthropy recipient, Stewart C. Mills, Jr.
The nomination for Stewart Mills, Jr. came from Ruth Gmeinder, BLACF Board of Directors, and Bruce Buxton, family friend. In his nomination letter, Buxton states, “I have discussed this nomination with Stewart many times and he has always refused to accept simply because he does not want the recognition. This time I chose to do it without his prior acceptance.”
Stewart was shaped by his parents’ belief in hard work, and giving back, starting with young Stew delivering turkeys with all the trimmings to local families at Thanksgiving each year – anonymously. As he grew to be an adult and a successful businessman, Mills’ giving became more substantial, but often stayed below the radar. One small example, he frequently pays for veterans’ meals in restaurants anonymously.
Gmeinder listed just a few of Mills’ beneficiaries of his charitable giving, including, but by no means limited to: the Crow Wing County Fair, Brainerd Jaycees Ice Fishing Extravaganza, Governor’s Fishing Opener, Brainerd Lakes Chamber of Commerce, Salvation Army, Teen Challenge, Lakes Area Music Festival, Walk A Mile in Her Shoes for Women’s Shelter, Lions, City Parks, and too many more to list.
Buxton concluded his nomination with this, “Stew loves people…to be with them, talk to them and help and support them. His father and grandmother set the bar high for him and he has honored them by clearing that bar and raising it higher for himself and the next generation. He is an example we should all follow and emulate but it will be a challenge for anyone trying to fill his shoes. “
The Award will be presented on the evening of July 13th, and BLACF’s Annual Dinner to be held at Grand View Lodge in Nisswa. Tickets, table sponsorships, and more information can be found at https://www.communitygiving.org/BLACF and click on events, or by contacting Karl Samp at [email protected], or 218-824-5633.
The Brainerd Lakes Area Community Foundation (BLACF), in affiliation with CommunityGiving, is a public charity that attracts and administers charitable funds for the benefit of the local community. Since 1998, BLACF has grown to over $9 million in assets and awarded over $4.1 million in grants to local non-profits. CommunityGiving is a collaboration of community foundations united under a single framework to create efficiencies that maximize the impact of our donors. The core foundations working with CommunityGiving include the Alexandria Area Community Foundation, the Brainerd Lakes Area Community Foundation, the Central Minnesota Community Foundation and the Willmar Area Community Foundation. Collectively, CommunityGiving administers more than 650 funds totaling more than $123 million. Learn more at CommunityGiving.org/Brainerd.