Record-Breaking $17.5 Million Gift Launches New United Church Homes ‘Fund for Growth’

United Church Homes (UCH), based in Marion, Ohio, announced today (March 25) the creation of a brand new Fund for Growth, thanks to the largest single gift ever received by the UCC-related organization in its 105-year history. The $17.5 million gift was made by an anonymous donor as part of UCH’s Campaign for Abundant Life. 

“This is a transformational gift that will help our organization reimagine life for older adults,” said the Rev. Dr. Kenneth V. Daniel, president and chief executive officer. “Thanks to this generous donation and the establishment of the Fund for Growth, we will be able to expand our mission more rapidly and provide more people with the ability to live in community and experience an abundant, purpose-filled life.”

The Fund for Growth will support continued innovation in programming and services for more older adults. Specifically, it will:

• Expand UCH’s use of innovative technology and connectivity for current and future residents;
• Provide service coordination and personal care programs to UCH owned and client communities and the public at large;
• Support capital renovation and enhancements to UCH communities over the next five years and fund construction of new older adult communities;
• Provide the resources for strategic acquisitions of middle-market independent living communities for active, older adults.

“Our goal is to help UCH serve more people in more places,” said Terry Spitznagel, senior vice president and chief growth officer. “This new Fund for Growth will not only allow us to support current needs through the adoption of leading-edge technology, but also to conduct research into the future needs and wants of older adults and build out programs and services to support them as their needs evolve.”

In 2017, United Church Homes kicked off a five-year, $20 million comprehensive Campaign for Abundant Life at the rededication of its Fairhaven Community campus in Upper Sandusky, Ohio. With this new gift, the campaign has essentially doubled its original goal with two years remaining to receive other donors’ gifts.

“We are humbled by the commitment of these lifelong donors who are standing with us in our mission,” said Gloria Hurwitz, vice president of advancement. “These funds will help us create a lasting impact on all of those we serve for years to come.”

United Church Homes’ founders embodied a spirit of generosity that led them to provide for others. “We believe this gift will be as significant for United Church Homes as its founding gift from a family was in 1920,” said Daniel. “That [original] gift propelled the ministry forward and continues to shape our organization even today. This new gift will carry us along new pathways of service for decades if not another hundred years.”