Dave Weaver on How Philanthropy Lights the Way Forward

Board Chair Dave Weaver shares his remarks from the Community Foundation of Elkhart County’s 2025 Annual Meeting. In this special episode, Dave reflects on growth, stewardship, bold ideas, and the power of working together to strengthen the place we call home. His message highlights how generosity, collaboration, and thoughtful risk-taking are lighting the way forward for Elkhart County.

This show is a production of the Community Foundation of Elkhart County. It is powered by equipment from Sweetwater and recorded in The Riverbend building in Elkhart's River District. Editing is done by the award-winning communication students at Goshen College, home of one of the best college radio stations in the nation. Listen to Globe Radio at 91.1 FM. Learn more about the Community Foundation of Elkhart County at inspiringgood.org You can follow us on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn. Music is provided by Sensational Sounds. Thanks for listening. We hope you are inspired and inspire good and your community.

Transcript

Marshall King: [00:00:00] Welcome to the Inspiring Good Podcast. This podcast is brought to you by the Community Foundation of Elkhart County, which serves a vibrant community in northern Indiana known for its generosity and strong network of nonprofit organizations. I’m Marshall King, one of your hosts, and today we have a special edition of the podcast.

In October, the Community Foundation held its annual meeting, attended by nearly 400 people. At that event, Dave Weaver, our board chairman, spoke, and we are delighted to share his speech on the podcast. Dave is also founder of weIMPACT, which is transforming downtown Elkhart through development and philanthropy.

We hope you enjoy this reflection from Dave.

Dave Weaver:

Those of you who know me know this is not where I like to be—in front of a microphone—but we’re going to make it work today.

I also want to give a round [00:01:00] of applause to the team that put the annual report together. They did a fantastic job. Marshall and Brian Cook, thank you very much for all you do.

Talking about lighting the way, I do want to say good afternoon. Thanks for being here today. It’s great to see the room full of donors, not-for-profit leaders, city officials, people who care deeply about this place we call home.

When we talk about the Community Foundation of Elkhart County, we’re really talking about all of you. You are the ones lighting the way forward.

When I joined the board nearly a decade ago—yes, I’m turning off as the youngest board member; I joined a decade ago—I couldn’t have imagined how this experience would change my own life. At that time, our foundation’s assets were just around $200 million. [00:02:00]

Today, as you heard, we’ve breached the $500 million mark, putting us among the top community foundations in the nation. But numbers only tell part of the story. The real story is what happens with those resources and the people behind them—what they’ve made possible and what they will continue to do for our community.

I would argue that our foundation is leading the way in rethinking what role community foundations play—pushing what’s possible.

My family started weIMPACT Group in 2019 after I retired. The idea was simple: philanthropy wasn’t taking enough risks, and entrepreneurship wasn’t focused enough on persistent challenges shaping our future.

“There’s nowhere to go. There’s nothing to do. There’s nowhere to live.”

Has anyone ever heard that in our community?

We believed there had to be a middle ground—[00:03:00] a space where business and philanthropy could work together to tackle the issues that matter most in Elkhart County.

The convictions came from my experience. I grew up here in a family of entrepreneurs. I’ve seen what it takes to start something, to risk it all, to build a dream, and to grow. And I’ve also seen how fragile opportunity can be when we fail to invest in people and place.

A decade ago, I looked around Elkhart County and saw potential—and problems people quietly believed were too hard to solve. I don’t buy that, because I’ve seen what happens when you bring people together—the right people, the right ideas, with the right capital at the right time.

Problems that seemed impossible start to become solvable. Unimaginable accomplishments become models to follow. That’s the power of partnership.

The foundation I joined nine years ago is not the same organization today, and that’s a good thing. Our leadership, our approach, [00:04:00] even the mindset we have has evolved.

When I started, philanthropy here was cautious. As Pete said, “Let’s respond when asked. Let’s stay safe. Let’s lead from behind.” But over time, under Pete’s leadership and with the board’s support, that model has shifted.

We realized that stewardship doesn’t mean standing still. Stewardship means leading with your resources—taking a position, investing in ideas, and helping others see what’s possible. That’s what lighting the way forward really means.

And it’s not just the foundation. Our whole community has grown more collaborative, more confident, and willing to take bigger steps together. That’s how you build momentum—one bold decision at a time.

One of the biggest mental shifts we’ve made is moving from a [00:05:00] scarcity mindset to a capacity-building mindset. Not-for-profits often operate from scarcity—limited budgets and staff while taking on an overwhelming need.

We here in Elkhart County are blessed. We’re blessed with an abundance of resources—financial, intellectual, and relational capital. We live in a community where entrepreneurs thrive, seeing what’s possible and going after it with tenacity. We have way too many resources to be stuck.

Now, not every problem can be solved with money. In fact, the more complex the issue, the less likely money alone will fix it. But when we have the right people around the table—creative minds, courageous collaborators—the right ideas find funding quickly.

The challenge isn’t a lack of money, but a lack of bold ideas worthy of investment. Ideas that move the community forward.

So today, my [00:06:00] invitation is simple: Bring us your best ideas. Take risks. Help us find new ways to move Elkhart County forward.

When I think about courage and risk, I think about Elkhart Health & Aquatics. When the YMCA closed after 135 years, it would’ve been easy to say, “Well, that’s unfortunate. The business model changed. They couldn’t keep up.” But instead, a handful of leaders—including Pete, Tom Haws, many in this room, and the foundation—stepped up.

We believed that investing in people’s health and well-being was worth it. We took a risk, and it’s paid off. Today, Elkhart Health & Aquatics has 6,200 members. Every fourth grader in Elkhart Community Schools learns to swim there. It has been an invaluable resource for our community.

Today, that facility has become a model [00:07:00] for other communities.

Think of the River District. We pitched that plan to a hundred developers. They all said no. “It doesn’t fit the model. The numbers don’t work. Elkhart’s too small. The risks are too high.”

But Elkhart County doesn’t need to fit anyone else’s model. We can bring our own—and we did. Now that area is thriving, not because someone from the outside solved it, but because we refused to believe that “no” was the final answer.

That’s what it means to take a risk for the right reason. For me, that is stewardship.

We often treat stewardship as if it means holding us back, protecting what we have, playing defense. But real stewardship isn’t passive or meek. It’s active. It’s advocating for the good of the community with the resources that we have.

We’re not just here to maintain what exists. We’re here to build the Elkhart [00:08:00] community we want to live in—for ourselves, our kids, and for generations to come.

I greatly appreciate the quote by D.L. Moody:

“Our greatest fear should not be failing, but succeeding at something that doesn’t matter.”

What kind of place do we want to become? What are we willing to do—and risk—to make it real and to make sure that it matters?

Another thing I’ve learned in this work is the next generation chooses place over paycheck about 90 percent of the time. That’s a big deal. It means people aren’t just looking for jobs. Jobs can’t be the currency that you win by anymore. They’re looking for community. They want to live in places with culture, connection, and opportunity.

So when we invest in trails and pathways, when we build stronger neighborhoods, when we support early childhood development and downtown revitalization, we’re not just fixing problems. We’re shaping a place that people want to call [00:09:00] home.

That’s where philanthropy meets economic development. When a place becomes more livable and lovable, it becomes more investable. It inspires hope and a belief that we can leave this place better than we found it.

We’ve seen incredible generosity in this community—from families who quietly give to volunteers who give their time, their skill, and their creativity. But generosity isn’t automatic. We can’t take it for granted. We must teach it, model it, and pass it on to the next generation.

Also, philanthropy isn’t about wealth. It’s about participation. Everyone can be generous in their own way, and when we do, this community grows stronger.

Recently, during a Building Strong Brains meeting focused on early childhood development and resilience, we were learning of new [00:10:00] initiatives taking place to impact kindergarten readiness. By the time we made it to the third initiative, someone in the room said, “I’ll put in X dollars toward that idea.” Suddenly another person said, “I’ll match it.”

It wasn’t the money that changed the air in the room. It was the idea. When people see a clear path to make a difference, they want to act. That’s how this community works. When we align around purpose with a clear vision, the best ideas attract the right partners—and the resources follow.

I believe the challenges facing Elkhart County—housing, childcare, workforce readiness, community health, early childhood development, and quality of place, just to name a few—are solvable. Not simple, but solvable.

We have what many communities [00:11:00] lack: a thriving market. Sixty percent of our GDP is still in manufacturing. We have creativity, resilience, and a long tradition of stepping up when it matters most.

We’ve seen it time and time again—rebuilding downtowns, reimagining education, investing in mental health and early childhood. We solve problems not because it’s easy, but because we care enough to keep going until we do.

As I wrap up my time as board chair, I’ve been reflecting on what’s changed and what hasn’t. Our assets have grown. Our partnerships have multiplied. Our impact is visible across Elkhart County.

But what hasn’t changed is the spirit that drives us all—the belief that we can build a better tomorrow together.

When I walk through the River District, visit Goshen Theater, or stop by Wellfield Gardens, [00:12:00] I see what’s possible when a community decides to lead instead of wait.

So here’s my challenge to you, to everyone in the room: keep taking risks, keep leading, keep building the Elkhart County you want. We don’t need someone else’s permission or model. We have the capacity, the creativity, and the courage right here.

Let’s use it wisely, boldly, and generously.

Thank you for believing in this place and for lighting the way forward. To my fellow board members, to Pete, to the foundation staff, and every person who has given your time, wisdom, and treasure—thank you.

Serving on the board and as chair has been one of the greatest privileges of my life. It has changed the way I see leadership, community, and what’s possible when we come together for something bigger than ourselves.

I’m proud of what we’ve built [00:13:00] and even more excited for what’s next. Because the light we’ve been talking about today, it’s shining brighter than it ever has—lighting the way for the next generation.

Thank you for letting me be part of the journey. All the best.