Funds ‘Planted’ for Knox and Lewis Counties Community Foundation of the Quincy Area

Libby Davis said, "It was great!" growing up in Knox County, Missouri. She played basketball and softball and went swimming every Saturday at Baring Country Club. She was in band and Girl Scouts and spent much of her time riding horses.
"We were able to do all sorts of different things," Libby said. Her husband, Jerry, his parents, and her own parents all grew up in Knox County, too. "It’s where our roots are," Libby said. 
Jerry and Libby have decided to plant some new roots in the areas that mean the most to them. The couple has started two acorn funds with the Community Foundation of the Quincy Area. The Jerry & Libby Davis Fund will benefit Lewis County, Missouri where the Davis’ currently reside. The Clayton & Helen Nagel Ely and Emmett & Inez Greenley McCloskey Fund, named after Jerry and Libby’s parents, will be used in Knox County, Missouri. 
Both funds are designated to benefit health care and education in each county, causes which are very important to the Davis’.
Libby’s mother used in-home health care in the year preceding her death. Both Libby and Jerry said the service was a tremendous help to them.
"They were so good to her," Jerry said. Now, their funds will help ensure at-home health care, in addition to other types of health services, will continue to be available in Knox and Lewis counties.
Jerry and Libby believe education is important and want to make sure the two funds will enable more students to attend college who otherwise couldn’t afford it. Their two children and daughter-in-law attended Culver-Stockton College in Canton, Missouri.
Jerry and Libby have resided in Lewis County since 1965. The couple is associated with Davis Funeral Homes, Inc. in Canton and La Grange and Ball-Davis in Ewing. The Davis’ have truly invested in their home counties. Jerry said the people are friendly and the area is a great place to raise a family. "People have been good to us here," he said. "We wanted to give back to the communities."
The Davis’ chose to start acorn funds with the Community Foundation because it allows other people to add to them. Through their generosity, the Davis’ were able to create a legacy for their parents and for themselves. As the Davis family and others add to the acorn funds, each will continue to grow and eventually become endowed, then grants from the funds will serve the counties where the family first planted its roots.
The Community Foundation of the Quincy Area is a nonprofit resource that connects people who care with causes that matter in the tri-states. It encompasses 13 area counties and works with donors to build charitable funds that support local causes. It is an endowment builder, a donor advisor, community connector and grant maker.
The Community Foundation serves as a savings account, building permanent funds to locally address significant needs and opportunities now and in the future. Between 1999 and December 31, 2007, the Community Foundation has awarded more than 535 grants totaling more than $881,300. The money provides support for various programs and projects in the tri-states.
For more information, call Executive Director Jill Arnold Blickhan at 217-222-1237, e-mail qacf@adams.net or go to www.mycommunityfoundation.org.