By STEVE KEIL
DSNWK
To celebrate 50 years, Developmental Services of Northwest Kansas (DSNWK) announced the establishment the Jim and Rose Blume Endowment Fund and a $300,000 grant from the Dane G. Hansen Foundation during their annual awards banquet Tuesday night.
Sue O’Connor, DSNWK board member and daughter of one of the organization’s founding fathers, Clem Hammerschmidt, made the announcement.
“The DSNWK leadership, both staff and the Board of Directors, have recognized the need to take a major step that will ensure that DSNWK will continue to serve western Kansans for the next 50 years and beyond,” said O’Connor. “We are excited to announce that DSNWK has established a permanent endowed fund titled the Jim and Rose Blume Endowment in honor of two of our most beloved and respected leaders, Jim Blume and his wife Rose. While honoring this amazing couple for their many, many years of dedicated service to DSNWK, this fund will be an enduring, sustaining source of new funding to support the mission and vision of DSNWK in perpetuity.”
The goal is to raise $1 million for the Blume Endowment by the end of 2018.
O’Connor’s husband, Deron, announced $200,000 of the Hansen grant will go towards the endowment. DSNWK is a quarter of the way towards reaching the $1 million goal.
Jim Blume is often referred to as a visionary and pioneer for services in northwest Kansas. Blume, who was CEO/President of DSNWK from 1982 to 2005, was featured in a anniversary video presentation and was the featured speaker at the banquet.
In the video, Blume shared a story about opening the Prairie Developmental Center in Atwood in 1975. To recruit individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities to come the center, Blume went to Norton State Hospital and sat at a table in front of a stage with a stack of files and candidates were brought out 10 at a time for Blume to interview.
“I could see them standing up straight and hear them saying ‘pick me,’ ‘pick me,’” said Blume. “That alone was a motivation for me to work for what they needed.”
“We encourage you to give serious consideration to a donation to the Blume Endowment,” said Deron O’Connor. “Your support will have a forever, positive impact on DSNWK, where we will build a legacy together.”
To donate, or to find out more about the Jim and Rose Blume Endowment, visit www.dsnwk.org, or contact Allen Schmidt or Sophia Rose Young at 785-625-5678.
DSNWK is a nonprofit serving individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities and their families from the counties of Cheyenne, Decatur, Ellis, Gove, Graham, Logan, Norton, Osborne, Phillips, Rawlins, Rooks, Russell, Sheridan, Sherman, Smith, Thomas, Trego and Wallace.