Funding Recognition

Two significant grants this year – from the B.A. & Esther Greenheck Foundation and the Judd S. Alexander Foundation – have allowed WIPPS to secure essential staff and resources to raise key operating and program funding.

The B.A. & Esther Greenheck Foundation is the legacy of Bernie, president and CEO of Greenheck Fan, and his wife, Esther. They created the Foundation as a way to thank the Wausau and central Wisconsin families who helped build Greenheck Fan Corporation into a global business. The Foundation’s purpose is to provide financial support for meaningful projects in central Wisconsin that enhance the area’s arts, education, health, economic and social development resources.

Anne Alexander established The Judd S. Alexander Foundation in 1973 to honor her late husband, Judd Alexander, and his family, who made extraordinary contributions to the growth and development of the Wausau community. Judd was a highly successful Wausau businessman who guided numerous corporate boards in the Wausau area, and served as president of Marathon Electric Manufacturing from its beginning in 1913 until 1940. Since 1973, the Foundation has made local grants totaling more than $40 million throughout the Wausau area. The Foundation fosters and promotes strong public-private partnerships to engage the whole community in programs and projects for the benefit of current and future generations.

WIPPS salutes these two pillars of the Wausau community for their support as we progress through the challenging transition from being state-funded to a self-sustaining organization on July 1, 2016.