INDIANAPOLIS - The family of the late Thomas H. and Marjorie Lytle Lake is establishing the Lake Family Institute on Faith and Giving at the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University to honor their legacies and ensure that their commitment to faith and philanthropy will be passed on to future generations.
Indiana University today is announcing a $5 million gift to the Center on Philanthropy to create an Institute that will explore the integral links between religion and philanthropy and how spiritual values influence philanthropic action. The gift was made possible by Tom and Marjorie Lake and their daughter, Karen Lake Buttrey, and her husband, Don.
"My parents believed that faith and giving are inextricably linked," Karen Lake Buttrey said. "Establishing a forum for studying and teaching those connections at the Center on Philanthropy is the perfect way to honor them and their lifelong involvement in the church and the community."
Karen Lake Buttrey will present the Institute to Indiana University President Myles Brand during a luncheon at University Place Conference Center on the campus of Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI), where the Center on Philanthropy is headquartered.
"I thank Karen and her family for their generous gift," Brand said. "Indiana University is honored to carry forward Tom and Marjorie Lake's commitment to philanthropy and learning. The Center's national leadership in the philanthropic sector makes it the ideal home for the Institute."
"We are pleased that the Lake Institute will be at IUPUI, in the city that the Lake family has done so much to advance, and at a campus where strong bonds between the community and the university will enhance its work," said Gerald L. Bepko, IUPUI chancellor and vice president for long-range planning at Indiana University.
Operating under the auspices and leadership of the IUPUI School of Liberal Arts and the Center on Philanthropy, the Institute will pursue research on timely philanthropic issues related to faith and religious values as a basis for caring for others, for volunteering and giving. The work will be relevant to churches, communities and nonprofit service agencies. It will engage the community through publications and events, including workshops, mentorship programs for aspiring philanthropists, seminars for young people and public lectures.
Two new positions will guide the work of the Institute. The senior fellow and executive director will be an accomplished leader who will develop the Institute and public service activities that engage the community. Dr. Robert Wood Lynn, former vice president and senior vice president of religion at Lilly Endowment Inc., who has written extensively about the field, will serve in this capacity until Dec. 31, 2003. Dr. William G. Enright, who is senior pastor at Second Presbyterian Church in Indianapolis, will serve in the same position beginning Jan. 1, 2004.
A distinguished professor will serve as the Thomas H. Lake Chair in Religion and Philanthropy and as a member of the Philanthropic Studies and Religious Studies faculties at IUPUI. The Chair will direct research and academic functions of the Institute, such as developing course offerings that explore the impact of faith and giving on civil society. The first Thomas H. Lake Chair is expected to be named by August 2004.
"This Institute, which will offer local services and have national impact, will build a lasting scholarly foundation for exploring the connections between faith and philanthropy through teaching, research and public service," said Eugene R. Tempel, executive director of the Center on Philanthropy. "As scholars and donors learn more about these links, this Institute will celebrate the faith values that guided the philanthropy of Tom and Marjorie Lake."
The Lakes focused much of their philanthropy on religious institutions, primarily Second Presbyterian Church in Indianapolis, where both were active in service projects and on numerous committees. They also initiated programs at the church, including the Lake Fellowship Program in Parish Ministry, a two-year residency in which aspiring pastors hone their ministerial skills under expert supervision.
Their community involvement extended well beyond the church. Marjorie Lake volunteered on the Guild of Crossroads Rehabilitation Center while Tom Lake held volunteer positions with United Way and other community agencies. He served on numerous boards and received honorary degrees from Indiana colleges and universities, including Indiana University.
During 22 years at Lilly Endowment Inc., Tom Lake served as president (1977-84), board chairman (1977-92) and honorary board chairman (1992-99). He had a vision for Indianapolis and played a vital role with Lilly Endowment in revitalizing downtown Indianapolis. The Greater Indianapolis Progress Committee recognized his leadership in 1983 when it awarded him the inaugural Charles L. Whistler Award for his outstanding civic improvement efforts.
Prior to his work at Lilly Endowment, Tom Lake built a successful career at Eli Lilly and Company. A pharmacist by profession, he started as a salesman for the company in 1946 and worked his way up to the presidency in 1973 before retiring in 1976. He served on the board of directors from 1965 to 1989.
Both Tom and Marjorie Lake grew up in Saltsburg, Pennsylvania. The son of a coal miner, Tom Lake graduated from Temple University with a degree in pharmacy and chemistry. In 1941, he joined the Army and served for four years, attaining the rank of major. Marjorie Lake, the daughter of a country doctor, graduated from The College of William and Mary with a degree in economics. The couple married in 1944.
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