A long career funding important community projects is about to end. This month, Joy Boruff is retiring after leading the Moline Foundation for 19 years.
After jobs in radio news, marketing, and public relations, she was hired in 2,000 to be the first full-time staff person for the foundation.
"Previous to that, they had just kind of operated as a community foundation and had volunteers that served as president. And then where-ever that president was working, they just gave out grants and they accepted money."
It was founded in 1953, with a gift from the estate of Robert Swan. And now has five, full and part-time employees. Grants each year total around 900,000 dollars.
Boruff says her favorite grants, of the many handed out during her years at the Foundation, include those for the various museums, the civic center (currently known as the TaxSlayer Center), and the Moline library.
"15 years it took to build the Moline Public Library and I still can't believe I was there for the groundbreaking and grand opening. And now we hold all of our grant meetings there - what a tremendous community asset."
"Western Illinois University - that's our biggest gift. We combined with Deere and Company and gave one million dollars to start the College of Engineering with Western and the Quad Cities Campus."
Boruff has not entirely retired just yet - she plans to return in the spring to work part-time on some special projects for the Foundation.
Her successor as President and CEO is Paul Playgenz - he officially took over on December first.
