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Thanks to a last minute effort just days before the December 31st grant deadline, Mesta Park’s Endowment Fund at the Oklahoma City Community Foundation (OCCF) has increased by $10,000. Many of our neighbors contributed to the cause, donating a total of $5,000 to the John Kirkpatrick Centennial Endowment Challenge offered by OCCF earlier this year. The Kirkpatrick Family Fund then matched our collections with $5,000, for a total increase of $10,000!

The Oklahoma City Community Foundation and Kirkpatrick Family Fund offered the John Kirkpatrick Centennial Endowment Challenge “in recognition of the 100th anniversary of Mr. Kirkpatrick’s birth. In 1979, Mr. Kirkpatrick organized the first of seven ‘Kirkpatrick Challenges’ through which he would match contributions as a way to increase organizations’ endowments and to attract new donors. These match challenges would become a hallmark of his philanthropy.”

The Mesta Park Endowment Fund was established approximately four years ago in order to provide a permanent source of income for the neighborhood. We receive 5% per year on our endowment fund balance, which now stands at over $60,000, and this will continue in perpetuity! The larger the balance, the more income we generate each year, so it stands to reason that we should donate to the fund whenever we can.

IT’S NOT TOO LATE TO DONATE! Although the matching grant has expired, you can still contribute to the MP Endowment Fund by sending a check to the Oklahoma City Community Foundation, P.O. Box 1146, Oklahoma City, OK 73101-1146. Please specify on the memo line of your check that you are donating to the Mesta Park Endowment Fund. You can also make a donation online with a major credit card by visiting OCCF’s secure website at www.occf.org/donate.

Many thanks to all of you who contributed to this worthy and lasting cause! Generations of future Mesta Parkers will thank us for having the foresight to establish this fund and for ensuring that Mesta Park continues to stand out as a beautiful and thriving community.