Posted on March 22, 2023
Baltimore – Penn-Mar Human Services, the region’s leading nonprofit provider of services for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), is proud to announce the successful completion of the $7.5 million “Building Bold Futures” campaign, the largest in the nonprofit’s 42-year history. The prodigious goal was achieved on March 4, 2023, the final day of the campaign, during Penn-Mar’s 31st Annual Gala.
Building Bold Futures was created in 2020 after Penn-Mar leadership analyzed what efforts and plans were necessary to not just solidify and expand the organization’s current services but enable remarkable and innovative new avenues for programming and support. From that point, the exploratory phase of the campaign began in August 2020, and it was publicly announced in September 2022.
Creating a campaign of this size and getting it off the ground during a global pandemic, was not an easy task. But as Penn-Mar Chief Advancement Officer and Executive Director of the Penn-Mar Foundation Kathy Rogers says, transformative change is never easy.
“We knew this was a lofty goal, but Penn-Mar has never been an organization that shies away from a challenge,” says Rogers. “To ensure that Penn-Mar will be there for the person who needs us tomorrow, and for the person who needs us in 20 years, we had to go bigger than ever. We always look for more ways to grow, more ways to reach new people, and more opportunities to deliver on our mission to Live Courageously. And this campaign was the answer.”
The funds will be actively used to support a wide range of Penn-Mar services, endowments, and programs:
Much of the campaign’s success can be attributed to co-chairs Beth Pitts-Madonna and the late Jon Kinsley. Jon was an executive at the York, Pa.-based Kinsley Enterprises, and a steadfast supporter of Penn-Mar since 2008 when he joined the Board of Directors. Beth and Jon’s enthusiasm in taking on such a significant role for Building Bold Futures, and their lasting dedication to Penn-Mar, was instrumental to the fundraiser’s success.
Sadly, Jon and his brother, Tim, passed away in a tragic accident in January 2023, and yet his influence was felt even at the March 2023 Gala, where over $120,000 was contributed in his honor.
“I simply cannot overstate how much of an impact Jon and his family’s leadership, expertise, friendship, and generosity have had,” says Penn-Mar CEO Greg Miller. “Not only on the lives of the people with intellectual and developmental disabilities we support, but on our team and on the greater community. His immeasurable contributions to Penn-Mar, and to Building Bold Futures, will be with the nonprofit for generations to come.”
The successful accomplishment of the campaign coincides with Penn-Mar securing $1 million during the Gala, a first for the event, and 2022 being the strongest fiscal year in Penn-Mar’s 42-year history, a testament to the outreach and planning strategies enacted by the organization’s leadership team and board of directors.
For more information, or to schedule an interview with a Penn-Mar representative, please contact Roger Mecca: roger@vitaminisgood.com.
About Penn-Mar Human Services
Penn-Mar Human Services is a nonprofit that supports people with intellectual and developmental disabilities to Live Courageously, whether that’s securing a job, being an active member of their community, building independence, or developing new relationships. Penn-Mar accomplishes this by supporting people on their own unique personal journeys. Founded in 1981, Penn-Mar operates 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, in northern Maryland and southern Pennsylvania. They support 500+ adults with disabilities daily through an array of customizable services.