By Becky Gulden

The Tipp City Foundation’s annual report will begin hitting mailboxes this week and Tippecanoe Gazette readers are getting a sneak peek!

According to the Tipp City Foundation, the annual report serves as a reflection of the impact over the past year.

“It provides transparency and accountability by showcasing how donor contributions are used to support local nonprofits, schools, and community initiatives,” said Heather Bailey, editor of the annual report and Foundation volunteer. “It also celebrates the generosity of our community and the ways in which philanthropy strengthens Tipp City for generations to come. We hope to reintroduce the Tipp Foundation to those in the community who may both need our help and to those who can also help by contributing to our 64 funds.”

Each year the report features artwork from a local artist. Each artist interprets the idea of community through their personal lens. This year’s featured artist is Susan Kuntz. Kuntz is a retired art educator with 34 years of teaching experience.

“Year-round I keep an eye out for talented people able to interpret the community through their unique artistic styles. When I find someone, I introduce myself and ask if they would be interested in telling the story of our community through their art. This year evolved in a similar manner. I knew that Susan Kuntz was retiring and that her time would fill quickly, so I made the ask as soon as I could. The work you see on the pages took at least 9 months for her to complete,” said Bailey.

“When Heather approached me about doing artwork for the annual report, I was hesitant – maybe even a little resistant to the idea. I have artwork for my own fun and interest, for friends, and for fundraiser requests, but never for a publication. In the last decade of my teaching, I found a digital drawing app that was fun and easy for my students to use. Over the years of playing around with it, I saw its potential for letting me use flat shape and color in many versions. Being able to experiment with several versions of a design in a platform that was as fluid as the ideas were, was so very appealing,” said Kuntz.

Kuntz grew up in a military family, which means she moved around a lot. In fact, she attended nine different schools before graduating high school in Germany. She settled in Ohio 42 years ago and attended Wright State University and then received her Master of Education degree from the University of Dayton. She settled in Tipp City in 2000 and after moving around so much the feeling of community meant a lot to her.

“I think what makes any place special to you, is how you feel when you're there. After a childhood of going from place to place, I like being rooted in a community,” said Kuntz. “Tipp City exemplifies small-town charm. It's the kind of place where people know their neighbors and stop to talk to each other.”

She explains how Covid and the feeling of isolation played a role in this year’s art project. It was during those first months of the shutdown that she would take walks with her wife.

“We talked a lot about how we don't realize how much we need everyone – the people we know and those we don't; the jobs we knew about and those of which we had no inkling – all necessary to the whole. Our connectedness is our strength, not just in our commonly held beliefs, but in our openness to what is initially unfamiliar, said Kuntz. “The quilt squares, I hope, reflect that each of us – all of us – are important to the whole and that our care for our city and each other is the binding thread.”

And that was the thought behind this year’s artwork: Tipp City imagined as a quilt. In one featured piece you will see Coldwater Café along with other Tipp landmarks.

“As we walked, I began to be inspired by the shapes and colors that I think are iconic in Tipp, like the blue rounded awnings of Coldwater Café, the storefront of Sam and Ethels, or even the granary on 571. These are things we see all the time, and yet they are part of the visual fabric we take for granted. Honestly, the quilt square idea came about because I felt like it lent itself to the flat simplified shape and color usage that I wanted to explore. Then it just grew into a way to show Tipp's connectedness,” Kuntz explained.

Heather Bailey agrees.

“Tipp City is a gem of a community that perfectly balances small-town charm with a forward-thinking spirit. With its historic downtown, locally owned businesses, scenic parks, and strong sense of civic pride, Tipp City offers a welcoming environment where neighbors support one another. The city's excellent schools, vibrant arts and culture scene, and numerous community events make it an ideal place to live, work, and raise a family,” said Bailey.

So, if there was one key takeaway from the annual report, Bailey says, it would be this: “The key takeaway from the report is that generosity fuels progress. Every donation, large or small, contributes to a stronger, more vibrant Tipp City and Bethel Township. Through the power of collective giving, we can uplift local organizations, enhance education, support the arts, and foster a thriving community for all,” said Bailey.

The annual report will begin hitting mailboxes later this week. If you would like one, please call 937-528-2482. If you leave your name and mailing address, you’ll be added to the list.

The Tipp City Foundation is dedicated to enhancing the quality of life in Tipp City and Bethel Township by providing grants to local nonprofit organizations. Its mission is to connect community generosity with local needs, ensuring that philanthropic contributions create meaningful and lasting impact. Whether supporting education, the arts, historical preservation, health initiatives, or social services, the Foundation serves as a trusted steward of charitable giving, strengthening the community both now and for future generations. They would love to hear from you if you have any questions about applying for a grant or if you would like to contribute.

By Nancy Bowman

We Care Arts has a mission of empowering the healing of people with diverse abilities through art and community. It aims to foster self-esteem and independence through creative expression and practical skill development.

“Our vision is a future where people with diverse abilities can achieve their full potential and feel embraced by an inclusive society. We Care Arts increases confidence and artistic skill in a variety of individuals,” said Kelli Campbell, marketing coordinator for the nonprofit We Care Arts.

Locally, We Care Arts offers high school Transition to Work classes.

The organization, founded in 1983 by Terry Schalnat, brings its mission to life through ArtWORKS classes at Tipp City, Bethel and Piqua high schools in Miami County along with nearly 20 more in five other counties.  The program plans to reach out to Troy and Milton Union high schools about participation, Campbell said.

Among program supporters is the Tipp City Foundation, which most recently provided awards from two of its 63 funds. The William’s Gift fund issued $5,226.53 while $1,000 was given from the Robinson-Walters Fund.

“The distribution committee has supported We Care Arts over the years because of its unique mission,” said Jim Ranft, chairman of that committee. “Their programs support three of our six areas of emphasis: education, social services and the arts.”

The Transition to Work in-school programs offer materials to special needs teachers providing instruction for students ages 16-22.

“We Care Arts supplements their experience by providing weekly art classes that reinforce crucial life and job skills at no cost to the student, school or district. We Care Arts provides individual bags with all needed art supplies for all projects for each student in the class as well as the teacher bag. There are also corresponding YouTube instructional video links provided for each of the art projects in each kit,” Campbell said.

In addition to the 2024 grant, the Tipp City Foundation has provided the following grants over the past few years: $5,124 in 2023, $2,500 in 2021, $5,000 in 2019, and  $3,000 in 2018.

"In the early 1990’s I had the pleasure of meeting Terry Schalnat.  At that time, the array of behavioral health services at Good Samaritan Hospital included an outpatient treatment program for people with severe mental illnesses.  As an adjunct to that treatment service, Good Samaritan offered a daytime “social club” (The Community Club) for our patients with severe mental illnesses,” said Sue McGatha, who was behavioral health services line director at Good Samaritan at the time.

“Terry worked with us to bring We Care Arts staff to The Community Club and to help our patients integrate art into their recovery process.  Our patients truly benefitted from the services,” she said. Sue established the Robinson-Walters Fund of the Tipp City Foundation in 2019.

People can support We Care Arts ArtWorks, Employment Services, Outreach and TTW programs by:

• One-time and recurring cash donations
• Provide items from Amazon Wish List
• Sponsor events
• In-kind donations
• Buy art from its Town & Country Gift shop in Kettering
• Volunteer in classes and for events.

For more information, visit www.WeCareArts.org.

By Nancy Bowman

An avalanche of grants wrapped up the fourth quarter for the Tipp City Foundation. Ultimately, 13 organizations received 16 awards totaling $39,683.02. Total grants awarded in 2024 are $177,721.33.

Since 1943, $3,059,850 have been awarded to local causes.

New ideas seeking support include digitizing 155 years of Tipp City newspapers, a piano lab for Tippecanoe High School, and a portable planetarium large enough to hold an entire classroom of students. Read more about these below.

The following is a list of recipients, award levels and the impact these grants will make. Any additional support that donor advisors of the Tipp City Foundation gave through their grantmaking is noted.

RECREATION

Bethel Local Schools, $3,101.77, represents a payment towards the foundation’s 5-year commitment of $25,000 to build a new stadium. The stadium will be used for sports and marching band activities. A Bethel Arts Fund grant.

Miami County Educational Service Center, $850, provides developmentally appropriate playground structures for Tipp City and Bethel Twp. Preschoolers of all abilities to improve gross motor skills and encourage imaginative play.

Tipp Monroe Community Services, $3,600, defrays Camp Kern excursion costs for 100 campers in 2025.

SOCIAL SERVICES

Connections of Tipp City, $300, supports an after-school program for middle and high school students. 

Seeds of Hope OH, $1,980, supports foster and kinship families with the purchase of safe beds for children who have been through the trauma of abuse and neglect.

Troy Literacy Council, $1,533, adults of Miami County benefit from the Council. A Gillis Fund for Self-Sufficiency grant.

We Care Arts, $5,226.53 and award, continues Transition to Work classroom programming in high schools throughout Miami County. A William’s Gift Fund grant. Additional support from the Robinson-Walters Family fund rounds out this request for a total of $6,226.53.

ARTS & CULTURE

Bethel Local Schools, $1,500, builds upon the high school ceramics program with the purchase of clay, glazes, and tools. A Bethel Arts Fund grant.

Tipp City Exempted Village Schools, $4,000, builds a piano lab in the high school. Each semester 20 learners of all skill levels receive lessons. Additional support from the Dave Drake Family Fund rounds out this request for a total of $5,000.

Tipp City Exempted Village Schools, award, supports the replacement of broken sousaphones with new contra tubas. A Dave Drake Family Fund award. 

Tipp City Parks Department, $1,692, supports maintenance in the Veterans Park. A Veterans Tribute Fund grant.

Tipp City Public Library, award, begins the digitization project for 155 years of Tipp City newspapers. A Wahl Family Fund grant.

Tippecanoe Historical Society, $2,022, underscores the importance of preserving and maintaining older buildings by supporting the Century Homes project. A Century Milestone Fund iho the Lantz Family grant.

NATURE

Tipp City Exempted Village Schools, $3,527, softens the landscape of the school under construction by planting new trees.  A Lucile L. Milner Trees for Tipp Fund grant.

EDUCATION

Tipp City Exempted Village Schools, $5,477.72, explores the far reaches of space with the Discovery Dome Digital Planetarium Theater. K-12 students can enhance their comprehension of state science standards all year long through this immersive galactic leaning experience.

HEALTH & SAFETY

New Creations Counseling Center, Inc., $2,000, assists with counseling and psychological services for those with financial need. Additional support from the Community Compassion Fund rounds out this request for a total of $10,000.

Rehabilitation Center for Neurological Development, $775, rejuvenates the sensory garden by adding shade umbrellas, a rainbow viewing station, a caterpillar climbing toy and other sensory-stimulating equipment.

Tipp City Seniors, Inc., $2,098, supports emotional and physical wellness of senior citizens by underwriting programming such as chair yoga. A Senior Wellness Fund grant.

Discretionary grants are made possible because of contributions, of any size, from the public. A full list of the foundation’s 62 endowment funds is available at www.tippfoundation.org. 

Quarterly grant deadlines are February 15, May 15, August 15, and November 15 each year. Jim Ranft is available for your grant-related questions at 937-528-2482. Applications are available online at www.tippfoundation.org.

Members of the Foundation are Heather Bailey, Richard Bender, president, Bryan Blake, Mary Bowman, Diana Featherstone, treasurer, Dee Gillis, Joellen Heatherly, vice president, Bruce McKenzie, Glen McMurry, Jim Ranft, distribution chair, Julie Taylor, Andrew Venters, Jackie Wahl, Bill Wendel, secretary and Carolyn Wright.

The Tipp City Foundation is a component fund of The Troy Foundation. If you would like information about how to make a tax-deductible contribution or how to establish an endowment fund, please contact Heather Bailey at (937) 528-2482.

For more information visit www.tippfoundation.org or Tipp Foundation on Facebook and Instagram.

Dayton Literary Peace Prize Author Series a Natural choice for Grant

By Nancy Bowman

When it neared time for the Tipp City Foundation to award its milestone $3 millionth discretionary grant dollar, the Dayton Literary Peace Prize Author Series was a natural choice.

The author series, established in 2019, may be one of the foundation’s newer projects but also one its board has seen have a dramatic impact on the community. The foundation itself had been making grants since 1943.

Tipp City’s Helen Pritchard drew the public library into the peace prize author series, and it has been involved since, said Lisa Santucci, the library’s executive director. The library, in turn, reached out to the Tipp City schools to collaborate.

The program was highly visible again this year with a day of activities that included students, staff and the community at Tippecanoe High School. Featured was Alexander Starritt, author of the highly recognized We Germans.

Activities also include a podcast with WYSO Youth Radio with extensive planning including training, transportation, lunch and getting books for all the students. Santucci, who previously worked as an academic librarian at Miami (Ohio) University, said she had the opportunity to see students interact with authors and see how that experience could change them.

“I wanted this to happen in this town, for our school district especially since it's happening right down in Dayton,” Santucci said of the peace prize program.

For students, preparation can be extensive with reading and discussing the texts along with literary analysis studies of characters and characterization, and analysis of the narrative techniques the author used, said Brenda Mahaney, Tippecanoe High School English teacher. This year about 230 students were involved in the project along with teachers from the history and English departments.

The program is paid for using grants from several sources including the Tipp City Foundation, which provided $6,500.

The community is fortunate to have the program for its students, Mahaney said.

“Living in a small town is a beautiful thing, but it does have its limitations, especially when it comes to developing a robust and multi-faceted view of the world.  People say that books can be mirrors or windows, and the Dayton Literary Peace Prize always provides our students the opportunity to look out of a window they might have never previously considered,” she said.

"Our students must be equipped to leave this town and prepared for a world that doesn't look or think like them and with very different experiences.  These texts and experiences help prepare them to be the leaders and forward thinkers that our world needs,” she said.

By Nancy Bowman

Tipp City Area Arts Council’s revamped Plen Air Event on Oct. 4-5 will give artists the opportunity to highlight the community’s offerings through their artwork.

This event was part of arts council activities of the past but died during the COVID pandemic.

En Plein Air is a French term, literally translated to mean “open air,” and is taken to describe active painting outdoors.  Artists create paintings and renderings in a variety of mediums depicting how their subject appears in natural light, at the moment of creation. The artworks are completed within the day.

The Paint Ohio History Plein Air event will begin with a Plate & Palette Dinner & Demo on Friday, Oct. 4 from 6 – 9 p.m. at the Tipp Center, 855 N. Third St., Tipp City. The registration for the Friday dinner is Saturday, Sept. 27. Register at www.tippcityartscouncil.paint.

Artist registration will be on Saturday, Oct. 5 at 9 a.m. at the Tipp Center, also the location for judging and Wet Paint Sale on Saturday from 3-4:30 p.m.

On Saturday, artists will be working across the Tipp City area from 9 a.m.-3 p.m., including downtown, residential neighborhoods, parks and the riverbank.

“Tipp City has such attractive, historic architecture in both downtown shops as well as its well-preserved homes. The natural settings in and around the city provide artists with a breadth of subject matter choices,” said Marti Goetz and Christine Hirsch, event co-chairs. Lynn Shirk Terrell is the council chair.

A free Children’s Plein Air will be in front of Topsy Turvy store at 115 E. Main St.  from 10a.m. – 2 p.m.

Those interested in participating in the event are asked to visit www.tippcityartscouncil/paint and go to the register button.

The Tipp City Foundation supports the Plein Air Event with $2,286 from the Tiny and Emma Drewing Fund. Added support from the Lucky 13 fund brings this project’s grant total to $3,500.

“It's a very big project for a small organization to undertake,” said Heather Bailey of the Foundation. “Marti and Christine's re-invigoration of the event is positive for our region. Marti has served several roles for the council over the years. Christine is relatively new to Tipp City."

One reason that the foundation wants to support the plein air event is self-serving, Bailey said.

“Our annual report is mailed to homes in 45371 each spring. Pages are embellished by area artists' work,” Bailey said. “Last year's report featured Trish McKinney; the 2024 report will feature the work of Susan Kuntz. By photographing the plein air works on easels while artists capture Bethel Township and Tipp City, these images will become the featured work for the 2025 annual report.”

By Nancy Bowman

The annual Tippapalooza Music Festival coming downtown Aug. 31 will not only highlight area talent but, in a less obvious way, the support of this and other events by the Tipp City Foundation.

Grants provided by the foundation are being used for a new stanchion fencing system to help secure this and other event venues, and stacking tables and chairs for use by attendees. These items will then be available for borrowing by area nonprofits for other public events.

The Tippapalooza Music Festival was the recipient of a $1,982 grant for the safety stanchions used to keep a gathering safe. Another grant of $6,227 to the Downtown Tipp City Partnership (DTCP) purchased the tables and chairs.

“The lightweight, durable tables and chairs will be an invaluable resource for DTCP, especially during our events. By owning these items, we eliminate the need to rent, which helps reduce event costs and allows us to allocate those funds elsewhere,” said Tasha Weaver, executive director of the DTCP.

These items will be used throughout the year including the DTCP’s upcoming Tunes Tour Beer Crawl, HarvestFest  and the Christmas Parade and Tree Lighting.

Tippapalooza, in its 13^th year, is grateful for the foundation support, said Bill Wendel, a Tippapalooza founder and spokesperson.

“The stanchion system will give us a more professional, safer and flexible border for our festival. And in the spirit of supporting the local community, we are making the system available for use to any local non-profit for use at their events,” he said.

The foundation has supported the festival in the past as a financial sponsor.

Tippapalooza will be held on South Second Street between Main Street and Dow Street. The doors open at 5 p.m. and music starts at 6. The featured acts this year are Colin Richards and Spare Change, The Tyler Cochran Trio, Freya’s Felines and The New Old-Fashioned.

Proceeds will benefit Dream Pet Rescue and its mission to rehome cats and dogs. There will be food trucks and adult beverages served by Chaffee’s Brewhouse. This is a family friendly, all-ages event, Wendel said. Presale tickets can be purchased for $10 at www.tippapalooza.com; tickets are $15 the day of the show. Those attending are invited to bring lawn chairs and their dancing shoes.

Tippapalooza was created by a group of local friends and music fans with the desire to promote local talent and to benefit local charities. This is the festival’s 13^th year highlighting talented musicians from the Miami Valley and supporting local charities.

The popularity of Tippapalooza continued to grow over the years until it was established enough to focus on and hire professional musicians. Since 2017 it has only featured professional artists from the Miami Valley who write and record their own music, Wendel said.  The event was moved to the downtown in 2023.