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Cathy Clark, Initiative Manager
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Pace & Partners
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Columbia City Splashpad project followed recipe for success

When Sharon Smith, program officer for the Dekko Foundation, sits down with a potential grant applicant, one of the first things she does is provide a pie. Don't start to salivate - apple and cherry aren't on the menu. Instead, Smith's pie is a simple circle sketched out to represent the applicant's project. It's perhaps one of the easiest visual ways to explain that responsible funders, such as the Dekko Foundation, aren't likely to fund the whole enchilada (or pie). Smith dissects the circle into healthy servings in an effort to illustrate that projects demonstrating collaboration and broad-based community support are much more likely to be favorably viewed by the private foundation in northeast Indiana. A visioning exercise during a local leadership class led to Park Director Mark Green's idea of constructing a splashpad in Columbia City. "From the onset, we had a good understanding of the Dekko Foundation's recipe for success. When the Whitley County Community Foundation agreed to partner with us on the project, I knew we had the first piece of the pie in place," explains Green. The exciting news of an Access to Recreation Grant from the Kellogg Foundation added another important ingredient to the community development project. "I felt much more confident submitting a grant request to Dekko, knowing that we already had two important partners committed to the project," Green added. Mindful of the importance of local support, the Dekko Foundation offered a challenge grant to splashpad organizers. If the small community (pop. 7,000) could raise $125,000, the Dekko Foundation would provide the $100,000 needed to complete the project. An article in the local newspaper kicked off a campaign to raise funds for the water playground. Following a modest direct mail campaign, checks began coming from local citizens - some who don't even have young children - because they loved the idea of having a free place for all kids to cool off during the hot summer months. It's important to note that the playground will be the first in the community to address universal access. Youngsters with special needs and those in wheelchairs will be able to have fun alongside their friends. It was that information that appealed to John Nolan, vice president of Steel Dynamics. "If it's good for the kids in this community, then we want to get behind it," Nolan stated. "Steel Dynamics really stepped up to the plate for us. The company pledged their financial support, but also assumed a leadership role by hosting a breakfast and pitching the importance of the project to other local businesses," explained Green. "SDI's willingness to partner lent credibility to the project and made all the difference in being able to meet the Dekko challenge," Green added. Columbia City's splashpad started as a pie-in-the sky visioning exercise during a local leadership class and a private foundation's pie chart philosophy of collaboration provided the recipe for success. When shown the plans for their future splashpad, a group of third-graders knew nothing about pie charts, but their response to the project was fitting - "Sweet!"