It is rare in American history that a community and a family share a heritage as closely woven as that of Allen County and the Foellingers, the founders of the Foellinger Foundation.

Like Fort Wayne and Allen County, the Foellinger family thrived across the centuries, with each generation passing along an ever-growing legacy for the next.

The Foellingers helped shape, and were shaped by, life in our hometown, decade after decade.

The Foellinger family scrapbook could serve equally well as a scrapbook for our community. An immigrant shoemaker named Jacob Foellinger was the American forefather of a family that later owned Fort Wayne's oldest company, The News-Sentinel; as the Foellinger family grew and prospered, so, too, the community was transforming from a modest military outpost into Indiana's second largest metropolitan area.

In large ways, the history of Allen County and the Foellinger family are one. And thanks to the extraordinary gift Helene and Esther left to our community, the same is true of the future.

During its anniversary year, the Foundation will mark 50 years of giving – with more giving. Three public events will allow the community to celebrate with the Foundation a half-century of grantmaking that touches thousands of local residents. Special grants will be offered to nonprofit organizations.

Like the love of the Foellinger family, the Foundation’s assets are a lasting resource. Each year it awards millions of dollars in grants to dozens of nonprofits to benefit all residents of Allen County. The Foellinger Foundation is one of the largest sources of charitable funds in Allen County. Its assets are invested with a philosophy of long-term stewardship to assure that as long as there are strong organizations helping children and families to create a better life in Allen County, there will be a source of financial support.

How might the forward-thinking Foellingers describe a half-century of giving?