Greetings!
Your Northland Pines Community Foundation has been hard at work this last year and has great news and expectations for the future. Let’s recap this past year and then look forward to new projects underway.

The Educational Enrichment Grants have been very popular and the Foundation has funded several diversified projects that have greatly influenced the learning objectives for participating students in multiple schools. These included funding for classroom materials to facilitate teaching, funding for outdoor educational projects, as well as funding a field trip to Wausau for a planetarium experience. Feedback from these grants has been exceptional!

We presented our first Staff Excellence Awards last spring and honored many adjunctive staff and teachers for their exceptional commitment to the students and schools of which they are the very heart. Our congratulations to those who were chosen for these awards, but also to the many who were nominated. Remember, there is always this next school year to excel and hopefully be nominated again!

The Dolly Parton Imagination Library has been going strong with new enrollees as well as great efforts and accomplishments in procuring new and additional funds for continuation of this important project. We look forward to continuing our relationship with this group until the time comes that they can form their own tax-exempt organization.

The 1st Annual Wheels & Deals was not as we expected. We anticipated more interest in selling vehicles but we just did not have the inventory. We had many people show up, especially later in the day, but had very few vehicles to present and sell. We are looking at a different venue and will be considering continuing with this project in the future. We will keep you posted.

We have two new exciting projects to announce this school year! The first is the Northwoods Pediatric Concussion Prevention Community Initiative, which we will administer locally. This was proposed and funded by the Eckes Family Foundation. It provides free helmets to students participating in any school activities that require they be worn, as well as students that may need conventional bicycle helmets. This initiative supports access to helmets when cost is a barrier. The Eckes Foundation has asked that not only the Northland Pines community students receive this support, but also the Three Lakes and Sugar Camp communities as well. We are happy to assist in this important endeavor and appreciate the Eckes Family Foundation’s generosity.

Another project previously discussed which is now a reality is an indoor classroom at the High School Forest. The Foundation was able to procure a donor to assist in this endeavor by providing matching funds up to $100,000! Matching funds will be available for this until December 31, 2026. The planned project will be built by the students of the Building Trades program in conjunction with Cornerstone Custom Builders and the Northland Pines School District. Projected cost for this project is approximately $400,000. We are very proud to announce this project and look forward to raising the funds and in-kind donations!

As you can see, your Foundation continues to be very active in providing opportunities to improve the quality of life for the youth of the Northland Pines School District and surrounding communities. As always, if you have any ideas, questions, or you would like to be involved, please contact us. We look forward to your support.

Dr. Scott Preisler