Most of the financial support for public schools comes from the taxpayer through property taxes, state monies or federal programs. Consequently, people tend to forget that charitable contributions to public schools are possible. They also can be especially important during an era when government funding for schools is increasingly in short supply.

Last month, The Messenger reported on the long-term support for the Fort Dodge Community School District by the Pontius Foundation Family Trust. Fort Dodge schools have benefited from grants from that foundation for more than 15 years. The district has received $1,235,000 since 1997, according to Brandon Hansel, FDCSD director of financial services. He said the $60,000 grant received most recently will largely help fund athletic programs at the Fort Dodge Middle School.

Andrew Pontius was a 1927 graduate of Fort Dodge Senior High. He felt he had benefited during his student years from the district’s athletic programming and wanted to help guarantee that in the years after his passing other youngsters would have similar opportunities. The grants from his family’s foundation are helping make that so.

“Without that money, it would be very difficult to run that program,” Hansel told The Messenger.

That’s exactly why the generosity of entities like the Pontius Foundation Family Trust can be so crucial.

The assorted government funds available for education will always make certain that public schools exist. They may not, however, always be sufficient to support all the programs needed to afford students a comprehensive range of challenges and options. Private giving – such as the commitment made by the Pontius family – can strengthen schools by helping fund important activities that may be underfunded or not offered at all when public monies are in short supply.

Locally, the Fort Dodge Community Schools Foundation facilitates charitable giving to that school system. Similar entities exist in other communities.

The Messenger encourages its readers to give careful consideration to how they can help their local school system succeed. We hope the example of the Pontius family will inspire others to be similarly generous.