Keep Indianapolis Beautiful Recognizes Supporters at Annual Awards Ceremony

INDIANAPOLIS - (January 27, 2012) Keep Indianapolis Beautiful, Inc. (KIB) recognized supporters today through its annual Donor Appreciation Luncheon. KIB honored Matt Teegarden, 2011 Volunteer of the Year; David Feinberg and Maureen Keller, 2011 Donors of the Year; Roche Diagnostics, 2011 Corporate Donor of the Year; Bobcat of Indy, 2011 In-kind Donor of the Year; and John Andrews, 2011 KIB Board Member of the Year.

More than 150 attendees were honored. Mayor Ballard commented on the special relationship that the City and KIB has: “I had the pleasure to present at a National Conference in November on the accomplishments of KIB and the City, and I am proud to say our partnership is a model for urban forestry across the county. KIB is extremely important to the future of Indianapolis.”

Information on award winners:

• Volunteer of the Year: Matt Teegarden
Matt has racked up more volunteers hours in 2011 than nearly any other volunteer with KIB this past year! He is a constant presence at our volunteer projects, willing to travel to neighborhoods across town, and to do cleanups, tree plantings, greenspace beautification, and much more. He has even taken on a leading role at some of our projects, which has been a great asset to our project managers. He is always happy to help out, and Matt is also a generous donor to KIB, and a member of SOLAR, our Young Professionals group.

• Donor of the Year: David Feinberg & Maureen Keller
David and Maureen, our Individual Donors of the Year, are an amazing couple. They truly are enthusiastic ambassadors for KIB, donating time, talent and treasure to our organization. They are members of SOLAR, our Young Professionals group, and Maureen serves on the SOLAR Panel, the leadership committee for the group. David recently planted 30 trees in 30 days with KIB, all across Indianapolis! These guys are great: they get their hands dirty on projects, they represent KIB at events, and they even help bring more support, in the form of corporate giving from their employers, Crowe Horwath and Ivy Tech Community College!

• Corporate Donor of the Year: Roche Diagnostics
Roche Diagnostics has selected KIB as one of its 6 primary nonprofit partners in the city. Not only does Roche Diagnostics contribute financially, but this past year they sponsored a wonderful project, where 200 of their employees transformed the landscape at Brookside Park on the Near Eastside with 200 large trees. KIB values health, sustainability, and community, and we are thrilled to continue our partnership with Roche Diagnostics, our Organizational Donor of the Year, towards the greening of our city.

• In-kind Donor of the Year: Bobcat of Indy
We just simply could not do the work we do without in-kind donors like Bobcat of Indy, who has donated equipment to KIB for more than 10 years! They donate heavy equipment such as Bobcats to KIB to use during our project seasons, enabling us to get our work done, and to transform our city. They literally help move the earth! We would like to thank Bobcat of Indy for that tremendous, ongoing support, by naming them our In-Kind Donor of the Year.

• KIB Board Member of the Year: John Andrews
John Andrews, the Board Member of the Year, played a crucial role in many areas of our organization this past year. He assisted with our building expansion work and with finding a tenant – this helped generate income to support our community greening work. He played a role in ensuring the success of a large pocket park project in the Highland Vicinity Neighborhood. And, he’s a committed board member who stands behind our work in the community, and we want to thank him for his amazing service.

In 2011, KIB worked with more than 46,000 volunteers on over 600 community projects throughout the city. For more information on KIB’s efforts to beautify the city and to learn about KIB programs, please visit www.kibi.org.

About Keep Indianapolis Beautiful, Inc. (KIB)
Keep Indianapolis Beautiful, Inc. is a private, nonprofit organization uniting people to build community and transform public spaces through aesthetic and environmental improvement. In 2011, KIB worked with more than 46,000 volunteers on over 600 community projects throughout the city. To learn more, visit www.kibi.org, or follow us on Twitter @kibiorg and like us on Facebook @kibiorg.

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