Established in 1982 as the Stevens Point Area Foundation, we were originally organized as an educational endowment. For the first 14 years, volunteer board members were involved in the thinking/creative process, with only a few grants in small amounts being made. The board decided a staff was needed in order for the foundation to grow.
Ann Shannon was hired as the first part-time Executive Director in 1996. Ann educated the community about the purpose of a Community Foundation, opened new funds, established the Women’s Fund of Portage County, and helped create the community play for funding dollars and community exposure. In 1997 the name was changed to the Community Foundation of Portage County.
Scott Schultz was hired as the Executive Director in 2000. Scott stressed planned giving and hired a part-time accountant. Scott passed away unexpectedly in May 2001. Board member Kathy Davies stepped in as Interim Executive Director.
Shannon Semmerling was hired as Executive Director in September 2001. Her emphasis was on strengthened internal procedures, better marketing materials and web presence. The stock market retreat in 2001-2002 were challenging for the Community Foundation.
John Jury became Executive Director in 2004. Funds continued to increase, and organizational effectiveness became the focus as we achieved National Standards certification in 2005. In 2007 we celebrated our 25th anniversary with a community party at Pfiffner Park.
In 2008, longtime board member Terry Rothmann became the Executive Director. Staff increased from 3 to 4 part-time people. Funds continued to grow.
Erin Andrews became the Executive Director on July 1, 2016. Erin led the Foundation through a strategic plan, database conversion, investment manager search, and a rebrand while also introducing an online grants and scholarship platform and developing a more strategic approach to community grants. In 2018, 2 new positions were added for a total of 6 employees.
In 2021, Jim Koziol served as Interim Executive Director January through June prior to Erin Andrews retirement in April 2021.
In June of 2021, Jenny Riggenbach was hired as the first full-time Chief Executive Officer. In 2022, the Foundation staff grew to three full-time staff & three part-time staff.