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Lucas Family Fund

Established 2013

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Donna Williams

The Lucas Family Fund was created by Donna J. Williams to support her philanthropic objectives in honor of her family.

Donna Williams, who passed away on June 17, 2014, was a member of the Community Foundation Board of Directors from 2011 to 2014.

She was a dedicated member of the Community Foundation Distribution Committee, overseeing the awarding of grants to local non-profit organizations.

A lifelong resident of Aurora, Williams graduated from East Aurora High School.

She then received her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in education from Northern Illinois University.

After a thirty-four year teaching career at Nicholson Elementary School in West Aurora School District 129, she served as principal at the Quad County Urban League’s alternative school for East and West Aurora middle school students.

Ms. Williams was a board member of the Aurora Civic Center Authority, the Aurora Historical Society and the YWCA Aurora.

She also was one of the senior leaders of Main Baptist Church.

Give your gift of time and see what it means to the people you impact. Helping others is what life is all about.

Neal Ormond

Donor & Fund Advisor

YEP was a great experience to have in high school. I became a more confident person, someone with a lot more perspective. Coming from a small school, YEP allowed me to branch out into my community, meet students from other schools, and learn about their backgrounds. I made some great friends and still keep in touch with them today.

Abby Vagnoni

YEP Alumni

I am incredibly grateful for the generosity of the Zari Foundation Scholarship and the Community Foundation in supporting my education. I am majoring in mechanical engineering with a concentration in aerospace engineering at the Rose-Hulman Institue of Technology. In my spare time, I volunteer on campus, in the community and I’m also the principal violist in the symphony orchestra. I hope to make an impact on the next chapter of space exploration by eventually working at a groundbreaking aerospace company such as SpaceX or NASA.

Taytum Newell

Albert M. Zari Scholarship Recipient

YEP has made me realize the importance of being involved in my community, and how to make a difference. There are a lot of problems in the world but if we can do everything that we can to help the world will become a better place. YEP has helped me realize this and encouraged me to help more people in the future.

Madi Porter

YEP Member

Education is important to us. We support causes that touch our lives and align with our values. We believe in paying it forward. We are here for a short time,, and it is the next generation that will take on what we leave behind.

Michelle Emanuel

Donor and Past Scholarship Recipient

Grant funds from the Community Foundation helped provide updated technology. These upgrades were transformative. By creating new time saving processes, it turned us into a more efficient organization.

Marie Wilkinson Food Pantry

Grantee

Being a part of the Community Foundation scholarship committee is the highlight of my year. For many, a scholarship from the CFFRV is the reason they are able to continue reaching for their dreams and changing the future of our world. I hope each recipients knows just how inspirational they are to those of us who are lucky enough to read their stories.

Jessica Breugelmans

Scholarship Committee Member and Board Member

Community Foundation of the Fox River Valley

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