LincolnWay Community Foundation welcomes Gannon, Meyermann to board of directors

The LincolnWay Community Foundation is pleased to announce the appointment of two new board members, Brenda Gannon and Erin Meyermann. They will fill vacancies left by Steve Kent and the late Merle Ocken.

"Both Brenda and Erin have showcased their experience, enthusiasm and creativity as committee members, and their dedication to the community will stimulate the Foundation into the new year and thereafter,” says John Peavey, board chair. “We look forward to working with them to promote the Foundation in its service to the LincolnWay community."

Erin Meyermann lives in Charlotte with her husband, Tony, an operator at Lyondell Basell in Clinton, and their daughters, Brenna and Brylee, who are a freshman and a seventh-grader, respectively. The family enjoys camping and Chicago Cubs baseball. 

Erin has worked for multiple nonprofits in her career as an accountant and is currently the director of finance for the Sisters of St. Francis in Clinton, where she became familiar with the power of endowment for both organizations and communities.

Her daughters attend school in the Northeast Community School District, and Erin looks forward to sharing the many ways the LincolnWay Community Foundation can help students, teachers and the community as a whole within the district. 

“I am hoping to be able to share with other Charlotte residents the opportunities the Community Foundation can provide our town both short and long term,” she says. “I would love to see endowments created to support quality of life in our community.”

DeWitt resident Brenda has been assisting the Foundation with its marketing efforts since 2013. In her new role as a board member, she is excited about the opportunity to connect people who care about the community with causes that strengthen it. 

“This is an extraordinarily generous community, and it is going to be exciting to see how donors’ gifts help people realize their dreams,” she says. “My personal mission is to use whatever resources I have to be a champion for small-town living, and ensure that anyone who chooses to live in rural Clinton County will find welcoming, interesting and thriving communities where they can work and raise their families.”

Brenda and her husband have three children. She enjoys biking and reading, and is learning to play the guitar. After working in marketing for nearly 30 years in Dallas and Chicago, Brenda returned to DeWitt with a renewed appreciation for her home in rural Iowa. 

“I think having these two very different life experiences will give me a unique perspective on how to help LincolnWay continue its success as a catalyst for good,” she says. “I hope my skillset and deep roots in this community will allow me to make a real difference in the lives of people in the place I love.”