MANHATTAN, Kan. -- The Finnup Foundation Trust of Garden City, Kan. has joined a growing list of special investors in the Kansas Agriculture and Rural Leadership program with a donation of $50,000 to the KARL Foundation. The foundation fund is part of the permanently endowed gifts for KARL, Inc.

The Finnup Foundation gift is the largest single contribution ever received by KARL, Inc., said Jack Lindquist, KARL, Inc. president.

“The fund principle will be retained with indefinite benefits to the KARL program derived from income proceeds of the investment,” Lindquist said. “We will utilize the funds to grow the endowment of the program for the long term benefit of the KARL program.”

Special recognition of the endowment gift will take place at the bi-annual Economic Development seminar in Garden City and the graduation seminar of each future KARL class. Principle earnings will assist with costs for banquet speakers and other seminar costs.

According to Finnup Foundation records, Frederick Finnup graduated from Washburn College in Topeka, Kan. He had not been long in the land business with his father when drought and depression struck.  There was practically no income from the land, everything was mortgaged and those who owed couldn't pay. He struggled with a long list of debts and eventually paid off the debts. He and Isabel continued in the family business and neither ever married. They never lost the vision that their grandfather and father had for Garden City.

Recognizing that vision, Frederick and Isabel established the Finnup Foundation Trust on Oct. 25, 1977. Upon their deaths, each of their estates would transfer into the foundation. The foundation was established for the purpose of dispersing income from the trust earned by farming interests, oil and gas interests and investments, to qualified charitable organizations. One year later, Isabel Finnup died.

One of the first gifts given by Frederick and Isabel was 77 acres of land in Gray County to form the Garden City Family YMCA Camp. That was in 1977.

Documents setting up the trust outline the Finnup philosophy in sharing the family's prosperity: “There is an obligation to use any wealth for the preservation and extension of the religious, cultural, intellectual, moral and charitable aspects of our heritage, as well as the protection of our system of government, for the betterment and general welfare of our people, now and in the future.”

Since operations began in 1990, KARL, Inc. has helped 300 Kansans from 97 counties improve their leadership skills. Each two-year KARL class includes 50 days of training for participants, including state, national and international study tours. The two-year cost per adult student is over $15,000, $12,500 of which is supported by donations. 

The Finnup Foundation has been an annual contributor to the KARL Program general operating fund since 1994.

The not-for-profit charitable organization, KARL, Inc. is located at Kansas State University through an in-kind gift of office space. For more information, interested persons may call Lindquist at (785) 532-6300 or visit the website: http://www.karlprogram.com/.

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