Retired CEO, Western Bank
Minneapolis, MN

Why did you decide to open a Venn Account?
I have always been a supporter of many charitable organizations through donations of money and time, but I was very interested in the PRI tool that the Venn Foundation provides.  In contrast to the one-time gifts I continue to make through direct donations, I appreciate that my PRI dollars, if repaid successfully, can be recycled over and over again to other charitable causes that interest me.  PRIs give me a way to multiply my charitable impact over time.

What is one Venn PRI you are proud to have supported?
I come from a family that values education, especially the teachers that provide that education.  My mother was a teacher for 45 years and my niece currently teaches special education. I have sadly witnessed the lack of support and resources that teachers face in this noble profession.  Because of this history, I was excited to support Venn’s PRI to TeachersConnect, a national online teacher-support community.  After discussing the organization with David Meyers, the CEO and Co-Founder, I was confident that he and his team had the knowledge and drive to make a major positive impact on teacher job satisfaction, and therefore job retention, with their online platform. There could be several reasonable exit strategies that would repay the PRI and enable me to recommend those dollars be redeployed into another PRI or grant opportunity in a few years.