Outstanding Board Member Celebrated

Last week I had the privilege of attending the Foellinger Foundation’s Carl D. Rolfsen Stewardship Award luncheon. This event is a truly special one for the nonprofit community in Allen County. Each year the Foellinger Foundation accepts nominations from many qualified organizations. We can each nominate one board member who has exemplified outstanding board governance and one of these nominees is selected as the award winner.

Every year there are probably 25-30 nominees, and they are all outstanding! To me, it is a tremendous honor for a person just to be nominated, because you are counted among the most dedicated board members at truly great organizations. This is one reason why this award has become so prestigious. The other reason is the generous grant that Foellinger provides to the winning board member’s organization. This year, the grant is for $15,000 in general operating support, and up to $10,000 in board development support.

CANI’s nominee, Todd Fleetwood, has been on our board for five years. In June, he completed three years of service as our board chair. Todd took over as board chair at about the same time that I became CEO here at CANI. We have worked closely over those years, and have learned a lot together.

When we nominated Todd, I felt that he had a great chance to win. He will tell you he has not done any more than anyone else, because he’s a humble guy. But his leadership was crucial during that major leadership transition, and he has worked to put many new board processes in place that have made the CANI board stronger.

We can always count on Todd’s presence and commitment, but what really made him deserving of this award was his leadership. He has been in leadership positions almost from the very beginning of his term, and in each instance I can point to many different examples of progress in the areas he has led.

I was a little bit nervous before the award luncheon started because I really wanted Todd to win. Honestly, it was not because of the funding that would come CANI’s way (that is definitely a welcome part of the award,) but I really wanted Todd to be recognized at the highest level for what he has done for us.

As the event went on, and all 27 nominees’ accomplishments were read through, I found myself getting more and more nervous. My heart was racing, my leg was shaking, and my wife had to tell me a couple times to settle down. There were some truly great candidates.

When Todd was announced as the winner of the award, I pumped my fist several times. That may have been a bit undignified in a setting such as this, but I was beyond happy for him.

Since receiving the recognition, Todd has mentioned that it “is a team award.” It is like him to display this humility, but he is certainly partly right. This award is a reflection of all the great work our entire board has been doing. But to have a great board you must have great leadership which is what the Carl D. Rolfsen Stewardship Award is all about. Thank you to the Foellinger Foundation for creating this award and congratulations to Todd – you deserve it!