Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Shelter Donations Top $3 Million

The Shelter Insurance Foundation has completed 15 years of giving with total contributions of more than $3 million. The foundation is a not- for-profit corporation sponsored by Shelter Insurance Cos., a muntual, multiple-lines firm head quartered in Columbia, Mo. More than 1,200 licensed agents represent the company in 13 midwestern and southern states.

John and Deborah Tackett of Arkadelphia serves Shelter policyholders in this area.

The Shelter foundation's primary mission is education. College scholarships sponsored by Shelter agents for outstanding high school seniors account for almost $2.56 million, 85%, of the foundation's gifts in the past 15 years. In 1996 alone, participating Shelter agents and Shelter Foundation provided $294,000 in scholarships.

Each Shelter agent who voluntarily participates in the scholarship program joins the foundation in contributing the money for each $1,000 award. The agent selects the school where the award will be given, and the recipient of the $1,000 scholarship is chosen by a committee of local high school officials and community leaders. Each scholarship is given without regard to race, creed, religion, national origin, sex, or employment status of applicants or their relatives.

In addition to the scholarships, Shelter Foundation also awards a limited mumber of grants that help support education and public safety programs. For example, the foundation recently contributed funds to the University of Southwest Louisiana in Lafayette to establish an insurance- education program. The foundation also matched a donation by a Shelter agent in Iowa to provide video cameras for his community's police cars.

For more information about the Shelter Insurance Foundation, contact your local Shelter agent.