This year’s Champions of Charity Luncheon on Nov. 19 will celebrate the generous and giving nature of the community. The annual event highlights the activities of the New Braunfels Community Foundation and features the New Braunfels Philanthropist of the Year Award (The “Eager”).
This will be the third year for the award (named after Cecil Eager, the catalyst and a founder of New Braunfels Community Foundation) to be bestowed upon a local philanthropist. The award honors a local leader who is an example of “paying it forward” for others in the community and who works to assist the NBCF growth in order to be more impactful.
From the very beginning in 2009, when Eager first began having conversations with others about forming a community foundation, his goal has been to connect the people who care with the causes that matter the most to them and enhancing the quality of living in New Braunfels.
This past year’s recipient was Gary Seals, current NBCF Board President.
Seals has served and supported a multitude of civic and nonprofit organizations. He was instrumental in helping launch the NB Youth Collaborative – a program that will provide afterschool services and programs for youth.
The community foundation encourages people to be generous, Eager said. It also provides a vehicle for people to place their money in a perpetual fund so that their assets will outlive them; but their desires and goals will continue because of that endowment they created, he added. With more than 160 funds, the foundation continues to grow and grant out to charitable causes such as youth and family services, food and shelter sustainability, senior services, education and more in the New Braunfels area.
Since becoming operational in 2014, NBCF has now granted more than $15 million in the community to nonprofit causes and has assets of more than $15 million.
“New Braunfels has consistently been called one of the most philanthropic communities in the State of Texas,” said Michael Meek, NBCF board member and event chair. “What better way to celebrate our community’s giving spirit and recognize the Philanthropist of the Year than during the month of November – the season of thankfulness. We’ve already had a great response from sponsors.”
The luncheon will take place from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., Tuesday, Nov. 19, at McKenna Events Center, 801 W. San Antonio St.
Sponsorships and individual tickets are available. Contact Brit W. King, President/CEO, at 830-606-9597, or brit@nbcommunityfoundation.org.