2009 DONOR OF THE YEAR

Every year, KIB recognizes some of our strongest supporters at our Annual Donor Recognition Luncheon. 

The following are our award winners for 2009:

BOARD MEMBER OF THE YEAR

Meredith Gramelspacher

In addition to being a generous donor, Meredith has been a leader on the board’s building committee, seeing through one of the most significant decisions KIB has made in redeveloping a new home, and a contaminated plot of land, into a new headquarters. Meredith was a leader in encouraging her board peers to develop our new home sustainably, allowing our headquarters to be a model and a place of learning for thousands of Indianapolis residents, government agencies and corporations.

Meredith is an attorney for the Indiana Brownfields Program of the Indiana Finance Authority, who has helped us make our way through a variety of complex issues in the move to a new building. On her own time, she oversaw the submission of our building project to the State of Indiana, leading to a Governor's Award for Environmental Excellence, one of only three companies to be recognized in 2009. She is a steady and clear voice on many KIB strategic decisions, serving on the Executive Committee of the KIB Board, while also being a supporter of staff. We appreciate her passion for the KIB mission, and her enthusiastic board service.

Congratulations to Meredith Gramelspacher, Keep Indianapolis Beautiful’s 2009 Board Member of the Year!

DONOR OF THE YEAR

Eli Lilly and Company

Each year, KIB recognizes a donor who has demonstrated an outstanding commitment to KIB and its work. Corporate partnerships are vital to KIB’s work. Eli Lilly and Company has single-handedly doubled the size of KIB’s impact. With Lilly, we are now doing on one day (the annual Lilly Day of Service) what just five or six years ago, we used to accomplish in an entire year!

Lilly’s partnership and generosity led to the first Day of Service in May 2008, followed by an even better Day of Service in May 2009. Lilly’s Day of Service has resulted in the largest annual corporate volunteer day that this city has ever seen. We’re gearing up for Lilly Day of Service #3 this October 7th, and look forward to a great day. Despite our differences in size and culture, the partnership between KIB and Lilly is strong, and is having an enormously positive effect on dozens of neighborhoods in our city.

Congratulations to Eli Lilly and Company, Keep Indianapolis Beautiful’s 2009 Donor of the Year!