The DeKalb County Community Foundation is pleased to announce the Dan and Kathy Schewe Family Fund, a Donor Advised Fund. This Fund allows the Schewe family to support charitable organizations that are meaningful to them, while creating a lasting tradition of giving.

Both Dan and Kathy graduated from the University of Michigan and built careers rooted in education and service. Kathy taught elementary and pre-kindergarten students for 33 years, while Dan taught junior high before transitioning to the employee benefits insurance field. He later co-founded a benefits consulting firm before retiring.

In 2013, they moved to DeKalb to be closer to their family, including their daughter Beth, who has worked in teaching and now serves in an editorial role at Northern Illinois University, her husband, Shane Sharp, a professor of sociology at NIU, and their grandchildren, Maggie and Zeke.

Their second daughter, Becky, was a professor of environmental sociology at Syracuse University and now works with the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition. Her husband, Curtis Laabs, serves as newscast director at WSTM in Syracuse, New York. Both daughters have PhD degrees from the University of Wisconsin.

Dan and Kathy remain deeply engaged in the DeKalb County community. Dan serves on several nonprofit boards, including the Egyptian Theatre, Friends of JAMS School, and Nonprofit Software Corporation. Kathy is active in Westminster Presbyterian Church and its outreach programs.

They previously held a Donor Advised Fund through a national provider but chose to move their philanthropy to the Community Foundation after learning more about its local impact and services. They value the role the Foundation plays in supporting the nonprofit organizations that are vital to DeKalb County.

“We wanted our giving to stay local and support the organizations that make DeKalb County strong,” said Dan Schewe. “The Community Foundation made that an easy and meaningful choice.”

The Community Foundation offers Donor Advised Funds as a flexible and accessible way for individuals and families to support the causes they care about. Through the Fund, Dan and Kathy will recommend grants to nonprofit organizations. In the future, their daughters will continue the family’s charitable giving, ensuring a shared commitment to community carries on for generations.

“It is a real honor that after years of witnessing Dan and Kathy’s generosity and involvement locally, they are entrusting the management of their giving Fund locally as well,” said Dan Templin, Executive Director of the Foundation. “Donors who have charitable Funds with their local community foundation are not only accomplishing their philanthropic goals, but also fueling our mission and services throughout DeKalb County. We owe all of our Fund holders continuous thanks.”

Donations to any eligible Fund at the Community Foundation, including the Dan and Kathy Schewe Family Fund, can be made online at dekalbccf.org/donate or by mail to the DeKalb County Community Foundation, 475 DeKalb Avenue, Sycamore, IL 60178. For questions or to start your charitable Fund, please contact Dan Templin at 815-748-5383 or dan@dekalbccf.org.